100 Drabbles
by Rizhae
Summary: I'm going to do it! I'm going to write 100 one-shots! Feel free to suggest which pairings (canon or not!) you want me to write. Will stay rated T or lower for the time being, but might change later on, depending on how adventurous I'm feeling... Also, there might be a few chapters with the Sekaiichi Hatsukoi characters, too!
1. Beauty

A/N- So... I know everyone starts these and doesn't finish them, but I'm going to do it! (Hopefully) My plan for these is to alternate between the 3 pairings, and maybe throw in some non-canon ships as well... maybe. It depends on what you guys want to see. Oh! And I got this list of 100 prompts from Dancingwithrainbows (Well, I kind of stole them from a Harry Potter forum without technically asking, but shhhh...) Anyway, hope you guys enjoy these, and please leave me a review with what pairing you guys want to see next!

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1- Beauty

Nowaki smiled softly, reaching over to run his hand gently through his sleeping partner's chocolatey- brown hair. It was silky and smooth- a detail that had shocked Nowaki at first, yet pleased him nonetheless.

His eyes lowered just slightly, settling on his forehead for a moment, and it disappointed him a bit to see that there were faint lines already present there from the constant stress that he was under from work- although he probably wouldn't be _nearly_ so stressed if he didn't spend so much time yelling at his students for things outside of their control.

Eyes sweeping downward again, to smooth, pale eyelids lightly covering the light brown eyes that were so often filled with emotion- be it rage towards a student, embarrassment at being kissed when he didn't expect it, or the occasional glances filled with undisguised lust in moments of intimacy.

Dark eyelashes, long enough to nearly brush against the professor's cheeks, which occasionally suspended tears when Hiro-san was feeling particularly emotional- Nowaki, as stupid as it may seem, had always been a bit envious of his partner's natural good looks.

His nose was well-shaped, not large or small and perfectly centered, and seemed to blend seamlessly into the slightly rounded planes of his cheeks. Hiro-san's cheeks were often flushed bright red- sometimes from cold when he was too stubborn to bother with a scarf, sometimes from anger at somebody's stupid mistakes in class- but most often when he had been reduced to a submissive mess by Nowaki, and no matter how much he enjoyed it still found it in himself to feel humiliation, even after so long.

Hiro-san's lips were full-bodied and a satisfying shade of reddish-pink that may have looked almost feminine on any other man but looked utterly perfect on him. There were times when they were having a conversation that Nowaki would catch himself staring at the other man's lips, watching the way they moved without actually paying any attention to what he was saying.

His jawline was sharp and angular- and as Nowaki reached out to brush his hand casually along it, he could feel the slight roughness of a few days without shaving the light stubble that had just barely started to form there.

Even in his early-morning state of disarray, Nowaki found Hiro-san to be the single most beautiful thing in the world. He smiled imagining the blush and protests he would receive if he told him that, but then decided he didn't really care, and extended his arm to gently shake the other man awake. Before he had even had the chance to fully open his eyes, Nowaki said,

"Hiro-san, you're adorable." the professor scowled, replying,

"Idiot..." However, he didn't protest in the slightest when Nowaki scooted closer and pulled him into an embrace, albeit the expected light blush blossomed across his cheeks and his eyes widened in just the way Nowaki had anticipated.

"I love you, Hiro-san." he mumbled into the other man's hair, "You're beautiful."

"Go to hell."


	2. Love

A/N- So... I forgot to mention before, but I'm going to try as hard as I can to update this story daily- especially since they're turning out so _short..._ Seriously, I'll try to make them longer in the future. And I feel like I butchered their characters in this one... OTL Anyway, remember, reviews are author food and I don't want to starve :)

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2. Love (_Romantica)_

"Is something wrong, Misaki?" Usami glanced over and gave the younger man a once-over. "You seem... stressed." The bags under Misaki's eyes were more defined than ever, his hair was tousled and uncombed, and he was still wearing his pajama shirt from the night before.

"Huh? Um, no, n-not really..." Misaki looked up from the novel he was reading for a moment, but didn't even attempt to make eye contact before glancing back down to the pages.

"Liar." Usami mumbled, plopping himself down onto the couch next to Misaki and wrapping an arm around his waist in an uncharacteristic show of affection. "What's wrong? Is it that sempai of yours at school, or that idiot manga author, or-"

"No! Nothing like that, it's just... school, and stuff, you know how it is!" Misaki gave an uncomfortable sound that could almost be considered a nervous giggle, and Usami frowned. In a moment, Usami had shifted their positions so that Misaki was laying on the couch, wrists held on either side of his head. Usami hovered over him, a frown evident on his face.

"Misaki, I can tell there's something wrong. Now... you can either tell me yourself, or I can make you." Misaki turned his head slightly so that his hair fell into his eyes, concealing his expression.

"Ah... L-like I said, it's just school! We have a huge assignment due soon, and I'm a little behind on it, so..." Usami could tell Misaki was still lying- which was something that his younger lover didn't do often, so e knew there must be something seriously wrong.

The death glare Usami gave him was enough to make Misaki start talking a few moments later. "O-okay... well, I, uh... It seems kinda stupid, but a few days ago I had a dream that I was, uh..." Misaki's cheeks turned a few shades darker, "confessing to you, and I..." Usami frowned, unsure where this could possibly be going.

"So you finally realized you love me, and...?" Misaki scowled at the blatant phrasing, but continued,

"And I've kind of been thinking that... well, maybe I should actually... tell you that." Usami simply smiled- not a sarcastic smile, or one of his perverted, I'm-going-to-ravish-Misaki smiles; rather, he seemed genuinely happy to hear the other man's words.

"Hmm..." Usami said, "Well, I agree. You should say it." Misaki struggled weakly against Usami's hands on his wrists, to no avail. The author's smile still lingered, expectation clear on his face.

"FIne..." Misaki mumbled, hesitating only slightly before saying, "I love you, Usagi-san..." Usami bent down and closed the gap between them, kissing Misaki gently for a moment before pulling back to say,

"I love you too, Misaki."


	3. Dream

A/N- I feel weird uploading the third chapter of this when I jet uploaded the second a few hours ago. But it's summer break and I'm bored so WHATEVER. ^^ And... I realized while writing this, Terrorist is hard to write. I really hope this turned out okay- I re-wrote the ending like 3 times. And I think Shinobu acts, like 10 here. But screw it, this was the best I could do. :P

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3. Dream (_Terrorist)_

Shinobu lay curled up under a light sheet on his bed, and no matter how little he wanted to admit it, Miyagi couldn't deny that he looked rather cute. It was about five thirty in the morning- Miyagi had woken up and found himself unable to get back to sleep, settling instead for watching his much-younger lover sleep.

By Shinobu's slight restlessness, the dark-haired professor could only assume that he was dreaming. He could see the high schooler's eyes moving under his eyelids, and wondered absently what was going through his subconscious.

As Shinobu began tossing and turning more frantically, however, it quickly became clear that he was not enjoying a peaceful, innocent dream, but rather was being plagued by a nightmare. This had happened fairly often earlier on in their relationship, but they had seemed to stop as time went by. Or so Miyagi had thought...

"Shu-chin?" Miyagi reached over to shake Shinobu's shoulder, trying to wake him up. He seemed to be too deeply trapped in whatever terror he was experiencing for that to work, though, because he didn't stir. "Oi! Wake up!" He practically yelled, and felt a wave of relief crash over him when the younger boy's eyes finally opened.

"Miyagi?" tears visibly came to the dirty-blonde's eyes, and without a moment's hesitation he buried himself in his lover's chest, clinging to him tightly. The dark-haired man hugged Shinobu close, as he felt tears begin to soak through his thin pajama shirt.

"Hey... it's okay, Shu-chin. It was just a dream..." Being rather inexperienced in the area of comforting people, Miyagi stroked his boyfriend's hair and whispered what he could only hope would be sooting words.

"I d-dreamed..." Shinobu's voice was weak and shaky, more so than the other man had ever heard it before, "... That you d-died, and it was my fault, and-" his words were cut off by Miyagi kissing him- gently, but with a firmness that served to assure the other that it had been just a dream, and there was nothing wrong.

"And anyway- I don't think you'd kill me, right? Well... actually, some of that cabbage stir-fry you make-"

"Shut up, old man..." Shinobu mumbled, snuggling subconsciously closer to Miyagi and burrowing even further into his shirt. Miyagi gave a light sigh of contentment- for the moment, at least, it seemed as though everything was right in the world.


	4. Haunted

A/N- Yay, finally a longer one~! ^^ (Although it's still not really that long... :P) Thanks to everyone that's reading/ following this, as well as thanks in advance for reviews *Nudge, nudge*

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4. Haunted (_Romantica)_

"Oi, Misaki, do you want to go in the haunted house?" Usami asked, grabbing his younger lover's arm and pulling him in the direction of said haunted house without waiting for an answer. There was a roving carnival in town, and while it was in the area, and Usami had insisted that they go see it as 'research' for one of the books he was writing. He had refused to tell Misaki whether it was a normal novel or a BL one, although Misaki could reasonably assume it was BL.

Misaki personally _hated_ haunted houses. He saw absolutely no reason why you would pay to go to an amusement park or somewhere fun, only to voluntarily be completely and utterly terrified. It just made no sense. His idea of a fun time at the local carnival would be to get food, wander around, and maybe ride a few of the more low-thrill rides, like the ferris wheel. Usami, however, was of the complete opposite opinion- he believed that getting scared shitless (particularly on roller coasters) was one of the best possible ways of spending a leisure day.

Before he knew it, Misaki was standing in line for the walk-through haunted house, and starting to get the creeps even from the very obviously fake bat skeletons and cobwebs hanging from the front of the pop-up tent that the event was being held in. The background music, as well, helped to create a mood resembling that of a creepy old shack, regardless of the fact that the fun was shining brightly down, and the laughter and chatter around them were still quite loud.

Much too fast for his liking, Misaki and Usami wound their way through the line in front of the haunted house, and were being ushered inside buy a rather grumpy, overweight man wearing a Frankenstein suit.

All at once, the light from outside was gone as the door was closed behind them. There were a few dim lights illuminating scenes along the walls, and Misaki almost heaved a sigh of relief- _this wasn't so bad, it was just a haunted house, it wasn't like anything could actually hurt him or anything, right?_

Misaki repeated this to himself over and over, trying to make himself believe it even as his heart rate was accelerating rapidly. Without thinking about it, Misaki reached over and grasped one of Usami's hands with his own much smaller one. Fluorescent tape marked that they were supposed to turn a corner, and as the next room cam into view, Misaki's already uneven breath caught in his throat.

It was a slaughterhouse, with actors in costume chopping up dummies or playing in the piles of gore that littered the floor. Usami eyes it passively, but Misaki felt like he was on the verge of throwing up when he saw the large display towards the end of the room. A man wearing a blood-smeared apron labelled, "Barry the Butcher" was making sausages on a real stove, and the smell of the cooking meat combined with the gruesome sight before him was nearly enough to push him over the edge.

He moved even closer to Usami, pressed against his side and still grasping his hand so tightly that he was probably cutting off the circulation to the other man's fingers. Usami looked down, noticing the younger man's evident discomfort, and wriggled his hand out of Misaki's grip to wrap it protectively around his shoulders. Although he would never say it aloud, Misaki appreciated the gesture and leaned slightly into his touch.

The next room was more eerie than gory, with paintings covering nearly every inch of the walls and ceiling- and whether it was paranoia or the way they were drawn, the eyes of every single painting seemed to follow them as they walked through the room. Misaki felt a shiver go down his spine, and somehow managed to press himself even further into Usami's side, now practically hiding behind him.

The next few rooms and hallways gradually got scarier and scarier, to the point that Misaki was shaking and his vision was blurring from held-back tears. He did _not_ like haunted houses, and absently told himself that he was going to kill Usami once they got out of there.

Finally, they made their way into the last room. It was a graveyard, with fog machines and sound effects and costumed actors wandering throughout, sobbing in sadness. It wouldn't have been all that bad, had an actor not decided to sneak up behind Misaki and grab him, resulting in him screaming at the top of his lungs and practically throwing himself into Usami's arms, adrenaline coursing through him.

Usami didn't particularly mind this- after a moment, though, he pulled Misaki just far enough away from him that he could capture the brunette's lips with his own. The younger man's eyes shot open, and he squirmed to get out of the silver-haired man's grip, embarrassed that a couple of the graveyard actors were looking their way uncomfortably.

"G-get off, idiot..." he mumbled, finally pulling himself all the way out of Usami's grip and making the way to the exit, clearly not scared in the slightest in the aftermath of being kissed. When the two finally made their way through the exit, a few seconds later, it was as though none of it had ever happened. Well... There was residual fear struck across Misaki's face, but that was to be expected after having been forced to go through a haunted house.

He really, _really_ hated haunted houses.


	5. Fragile

A/N- I rewrote this like 3 times, no joke... I just couldn't find anything I really liked for it. I finally settled with this, and even still I'm not terribly satisfied with it, I guess it's alright. Maybe. As always, reviews are much appreciated, and feel free to suggest pairings you'd ilk to see in the future!

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5. Fragile (_Egoist)_

"_Shit!"_ Hiroki exclaimed, his face contorting into an expression on pain. He had been carrying a large pile of papers and books that had long since overflowed his bag, and because of that he tripped and fell over the genkan step in the entranceway after he removed his shoes.

His papers flew everywhere, their previous state of near-perfect organization ruined; however, Hiroki didn't notice this at first, as most of his attention was targeted on his wrist, which was suddenly in considerable pain.

"Hiro-san?" Nowaki's head appeared around the corner. "... Oh." Despite that his partner was obviously in pain, Nowaki couldn't help smiling slightly. Hiroki was always so composed that seeing him splayed across the floor, surrounded by fallen papers, was a bit comical.

"Ow..." The fallen man grumbled, pulling himself to his feet. "Who put that damn step there?" It was a rhetorical question, but as Nowaki knelt down to help him gather the papers, he answered,

"I don't know, the people who built the building, I guess. Anyway, are you okay?" Nowaki had noticed that the professor avoided using his left wrist, and reached out to grasp it lightly. Hiroki pulled away sharply, losing his balance and falling onto his backside.

"Yeah, I'm fine, don't worry about it." Hiroki mumbled, his words completely opposite of his actions.

"No, you're not- let me see your wrist." Rarely was Nowaki so firm with the way he said things; it was a little strange. Finally, Hiroki held out his arm for the doctor-in-training to inspect, eyes wandering over the papers still scattered across the floor.

There was already a bruise forming, and Hiroki couldn't help but wince and try to pull away again as Nowaki poked and prodded. "Well... It's not broken, at least. I think you sprained it." Nowaki said, finally releasing Hiroki's arm. "I'll get the first-aid kit."

"I'm fine- I'll just put some ice on it once I finish picking these up." It was clear, however, that Nowaki was _not_ about to neglect the other man's injury.

"Hiro-_san_. Please, just humor me and let me help you?" Hiroki sighed, knowing that once the giant had his mind set on something there was no way of getting out of it. Deciding that he could stand to leave the papers for the time being, Hiroki got up and followed the other man into the kitchen. It was evident by the expression on his face that Nowaki was going to take advantage of this situation to play doctor- Not that hiroki truly minded all that much.

A few minutes later Nowaki had wrapped a bandage around Hiroki's wrist and was holding an ice pack to it, despite Hiroki's grumbling that he was fine and had work to do- but Nowaki wasn't about to let go just yet. It might have seemed stupid, even to him, but the idea that even Hiro- san could be fragile and get hurt sometimes was a rather endearing thought, and just another reminder of why he loved him.


	6. Lessons

A/N- So, this one's for Sylvia Lee~! I never would have thought of shipping these two, but I guess it works pretty well. Maybe. It was really hard to write though, and I think I made Hiro-san act like Miyagi XD And I'm sorry, it was requested that they already be in an established relationship, but... that didn't really happen, obviously... OTL

Hope you guys enjoy~! ^^ (And remember, reviews = author food. And right now I'm kind of starving... jussayin')

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6. Lessons (_Hiroki x Shinobu_)

"W-what do you mean, 'get lost'?" Shinobu was trembling, hardly daring even to look up at black-haired professor before him. Miyagi frowned and said, in a slightly agitated tone,

"I mean what I said. Get lost. I won't go out with you- because you're seventeen years younger, because you're my ex-wife's brother, because I'm _straight._" A tear fell down Shinobu's cheek, dripping to soak into the gray carpet below a moment later.

"B-but... It's fate, it has to be! There's no way it's not-!" Shinobu was cut off mid-sentence by a resounding slap across the face.

"Listen, brat. I told you- the answer's no. Maybe next time you'll find an even older, gay man to share your twisted affections- but not this time." And with that, Miyagi turned on his heel and stormed in the direction of his office, the slam echoing through the halls for a moment. Shinobu stood frozen in shock and horror for only a moment before turning and running. He wasn't sure where he was going, exactly, just as far away as he could get from the man who had broken her heart.

He hadn't run far at all, though, when he ran into someone walking in the other direction. A few books fell to the ground that the man had been holding, and Shinobu glanced up quickly, snapped out of his thoughts by the appearance of the man. He had light-ish brown hair, and his eyes nearly matched.

And to Shinobu's tormented heart, it was love at first sight.

"Will you tutor me?" Shinobu asked, his voice determined and sharp.

"No." Hiroki answered, almost before the question was all of the way out of the boy's mouth. "I'm not tutoring students right now. And- are you even in college yet?" Shinobu shook his head.

"I will be next year! I just needed some help with entrance exams and-" Technically, Shinobu didn't need any help at all. He was decently sure that he would do just fine with entrance exams, but that had been the first excuse he had been able to think of for a reason to see the professor again.

"What department are you considering going into?" Shinobu faltered. His dream previously had been literature, because that was what Miyagi taught, but now he wasn't so sure.

"I- I'm not sure yet, but probably literature." He said, puffing out his cheeks slightly. "I still have to get through my entrance exams though, so..."

"And you want to come to M University, I assume?" Shinobu nodded. "Why do you want me to tutor you, of all people? The professor I share my office with, Miyagi, would surely be glad to-"

"No! It... It can't be him. Please?" Shinobu ran a hand through his hair in agitation. Since he had been looking down and avoiding Hiroki's eyes since almost the moment he entered the room, this was the first time he had gotten a good look in the young man's eyes. His expression was set, and his eyes shone with a determination rarely seen in students. If this dirty blonde was really so determined to learn, who was Hiroki to stop him?

"I guess, if you really are serious about this, we might be able to make arrangements. But don't expect me to go easy on you, are we agreed, Takatsuki?" Shinobu nodded, relief and delight clear on his features.

"Thank you, Kamijou-sensei. I'll make sure to try my best."

Shinobu put down his pencil, confident that his essay was sufficient, before shoving the paper unceremoniously in the direction of his tutor. Hiroki skimmed over it, nodding slightly in satisfaction in between making a few red pen marks.

"Well... You made a few stupid mistakes-" Shinobu frowned at the blatant phrasing, "-but overall I'd say you're much improved." The dirty-blonde practically glowed at the words, but his mood quickly turned serious a moment later.

"Do you believe in fate?" He asked, watching the other man's expression closely. "Or destiny, or whatever you want to call it?" The professor shook his head.

"I don't. But I really don't see how my opinion is relevant to-" Shinobu stood up, slamming his hands onto the table on frustration.

"Well _I _do. I mean, why else would I have even met you, if not for that? Why else would I have been rejected only to run into you moments later? That _has_ to be the reason, there's no other option- so _why? Why_ do you act the exact same around me now as you did the day we met?" Shinobu leaned over the desk that was currently separating him from his tutor and _yelled,_ stunning the other man into silence.

"I... I really don't see what you mean. If you were honestly just looking for someone to be your tutor, you're really being far too melodramatic to-" Shinobu, in a surprisingly daring moment, leaned the rest of the way over the table and closed the gap between himself and the older man, crashing their lips together sloppily.

"I _wasn't_ just looking for a tutor, damnit! I... I was in love with Miyagi, but he refused to reciprocate my feelings. And I... I have no idea why the hell I started falling for you, but I did, and you _clearly_ don't either, and... and..." Shinobu regained his seat, covering his face in his hands as the full impact of what he had done soaked into his mind.

"I'm sorry..." he mumbled, his words muffled by both his hands and by his inevitably oncoming tears.

"You... fell for Miyagi? You touched in the head or something?" Hiroki asked in a rather pointless attempt to lighten the mood between the two. "But... I'm gonna sound like a damn pedophile for saying this..." Shinobu looked up, eyes wide with the hope that maybe he wouldn't have to face rejection again. "Maybe your feelings aren't _completely_ one-sided..."


	7. Moonlight

A/N- Not much to say about this one since I'm trying to upload it before my laptop dies. But, I got the idea from the imagine your OTP tumblr, but I can't actually find the prompt right now, so... Yeah. Enjoy~ And remember, reviews are author food! ^^

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7. Moonlight (_Romantica_)

"Misaki, come on- we're going stargazing." Usami said firmly, picking out a few old blankets and pillows from the linen closet before turning to look at the brunette.

"Um... How?" Misaki asked. They lived in the middle of the city after all, it wasn't like there were many stars visible beyond the haze of pollution and light over Tokyo.

Usami didn't answer, reaching over to grasp Misaki's wrist, blankets still in hand, and pulling him in the direction of the door. However, instead of heading down in the elevator, they went up. When the elevator doors dinged open, Misaki was greeted by the sight of the apartment complex's rooftop. Despite having lived with Usami for as long as he had, it had never occurred to him that there might be anything worth seeing on the roof.

And maybe that would have been true, during the day. But at night, it was almost as though it were an entirely different world. They were a considerable height above the ground, so much so that most of the city noises had been drowned out, leaving only a faint hum in the background.

There were some scattered stars visible- although it was nothing compared to if they were in a less urban area, they had their own kind of lingering beauty. Usami spread out one of the blankets and the pillows while Misaki was soaking in the view, taking a seat before saying,

"You like it? I used to come up here a lot, but I haven't really had time ever since you came." Misaki caught the subtle implication- he hadn't had time to come up here at night since Misaki's arrival, since most nights he was in the penthouse a floor below, doing things to Misaki.

"Um... yeah, it's really nice up here, Usagi-san. But why did you bring me-" Misaki settled down on the blanket next to Usami, although still keeping a distance between them.

"I told you. We're stargazing." Usami leaned back to rest his head on the pillow, staring up at the sky. His actions were unusually out of character- usually he would have tried to at least kiss Misaki, if not more. Not that Misaki was complaining, but there was something about the silver-haired rabbit's behavior that seemed out of the ordinary.

Deciding to just go with it, at least for now, Misaki laid down and looked up at the sky. It amazed him, how even in the middle of the city the stars could still seem so bright, despite the occasional airplanes criss-crossing each other up above. After looking for a while, small constellations began to pop out at him. "Isn't that the Big Dipper?" He asked, pointing. Usami nodded, then reached up to grasp Misaki's hand in his own, holding them like that above them for a moment.

"And over there's Orion's Belt, see?" Usami gestured to the hourglass-shaped constellation in a different part of the sky.

"Oh- yeah, I see it." Despite the warm mid-summer weather, a cool breeze blew over, making Misaki shiver and scoot a bit closer to Usami, if only for a source of warmth.

Usami smiled, but Misaki pretended not to see it despite the slight blush spreading over his cheeks. "Oh, look- if you look really closely at those ones there, they look like a rabbit, kind of!" Misaki pointed again, to a random clump of stars that really didn't look like much of everything.

"Yeah... Well, actually... No, not really." Usami mumbled, rolling onto his side and wrapping an arm tightly around Misaki's waist.

"Idiot Usagi... Don't fall asleep up here, it's not like I can carry you back downstairs if you do." Misaki could almost see the cunning smile that was surely present on the author's face.

"Exactly. Let's just stay up here." Usami mumbled, much to Misaki's surprise. Personally, he would have been much more comfortable on the floor below, in his bed with a proper mattress and walls and a ceiling- but if he was stuck here in Usami's arms under the starry sky, well, maybe that wouldn't be too bad either.


	8. Secret

A/N- So, this one's another non-canon pairing, this time with Nowaki x Misaki. I love this pairing, even though I feel like this turned out really awkward... It was supposed to be like a deleted scene or maybe an alternate ending for Lizzy'-'Rocks's story, "Chance Encounter: Junjou Optimist" So I don't know how much sense this will make if you haven't read that... Actually, I'll just explain.

Basically, Usagi attacked Misaki and while he was in the hospital he met Nowaki and then they started living together (Since Misaki had nowhere else to go) I guess that's about where this fits into the plot. You guys should go read that story. It's cool ^^

And as always, reviews are author food, and I don't wanna starve~! (And holy crap this author's note is long...)

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8. Secret (Misaki x Nowaki)

"Is there something you've been keeping from me, Misaki?" Nowaki asked, his tone more firm than usual. The brunette paled slightly, but still tried to shake his head in denial.

"W-what do you mean?" he asked, words shaking slightly despite trying to keep his tone level.

"I _mean_, you've seemed like there's something wrong lately. You can talk to me, you know." Misaki nodded quickly, but still tried to insist that there was anything wrong.

"I'm fine. Really." Misaki got up from where he had been working on homework on the couch, and walked into the kitchen to help Nowaki with cooking dinner. Even though it was just the two of them, they were both rather skilled at cooking, so they generally opted to eat at home, and both helped out with the cooking.

"Well, to be honest, there is kind of something..." Misaki said softly, insecurity clear on his words. He wanted to get the issue off his chest, but still wasn't quite comfortable enough with Nowaki to feel comfortable with asking what he wanted to.

"You can tell me, whatever it is." Nowaki said, smiling in his usual reassuring way. When Misaki still didn't say anything, Nowaki prompted, "Does it have to do with Usami-san?" Misaki shook his head.

"Not exactly... But I mean, I've been wondering, what... w-what exactly are we?" Misaki avoided eye contact, turning to chop onions as quickly as he could. _At least this way it would disguise the emotions he was feeling... _

"Hmm... what do you mean? Because last time I'd checked we were both male humans, originating from Japan... I assume that's not what you mean?" It was evident that Misaki was _not_ in the mood for the joke.

"I mean... We live together, and you've kissed me, b-but-" Misaki blushed, finding himself unable to complete the sentence.

"But you're not sure if we're really lovers?" Misaki nodded, glad that he had managed to get his point across. "Well... I _do_ like you. But, I'd just thought that it being so soon after you got out of your relation with Usami-san, you'd want some space for a while. Or am I wrong?" Misaki couldn't think of an answer, just turned back to dicing vegetables before he finally said,

"I... I do like you too, but it's just been really confusing dealing with all of this right now and-" Misaki was cut off by Nowaki pressing their lips together, shocking him into silence. He kissed Misaki gently, not forcing him or pressuring him in any way, like Usami undoubtedly would.

"I know- which is why I'll wait until you've settled everything you need to before I'll let you fell in love with me." Maybe it would have seemed an egotistical thing to say coming from anyone else, but somehow it seemed a perfectly natural, caring, gentle thing for Nowaki to say.

Misaki nodded mutely, pulling himself close to Nowaki but this time burying his face in the older man's chest "Thank you..." he sighed, glad to have the man's warmth and comfort there for him when he needed it most.


	9. Promise

A/N- So... I know this isn't really JR, (It's Sekaiichi Hatsukoi) but I _really _wanted to write this one since I love this couple. Feel free to skip this one if you want, I guess. It's really short, but I really liked how it turned out. As always, author food is appreciated~! :D

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9. Promise (Yukina x Kisa)

'_I'll be there by 8- I promise this time!'_ Yukina looked down at the message on his cell phone screen and sighed- Kisa had messaged him almost two hours before, guaranteeing that he would be waiting in front of the bookstore the moment his lover was done with work. The small clock in the corner of the cell phone screen said it was almost eight thirty.

"Kisa-san...where are you?" Yukina sighed softly to himself, looking up and down the crowded sidewalk to try to spot his lover among the bustling pedestrian traffic. A part of him absently wondered if his boyfriend had forgotten, or if he was indeed on his way. It didn't take long after that, however, for the cinnamon- haired man to spot the manga editor running in his direction, cheeks flushed from hurrying through the cold weather in his obvious hurry to get there.

"S-sorry..." Kisa was out of breath and nearly doubled over, his hands on his knees as he gasped for air. "I m-missed the train... had to take the next one..." It took a moment for him to catch his breath, and once he was finally standing upright again, he saw that his lover was smiling widely.

"It's fine, Kisa-san." He said, "You promised, after all!"


	10. Innocence

A/N- I re-wrote this 3 times. I still hate it. Sorry 'bout this one, I couldn't really think of anything... I mean, none of them are innocent, right? XP

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10. Innocence (_Terrorist)_

Although there were a lot of things Shinobu was, innocent was never among them. How could it be, with the fact that he had managed to seduce a man so much older than himself? He was certainly not physically innocent, either, what with the amount of times he had slept with said older professor. And yet, even though the word wasn't truly accurate at all, it seemed to fit. The slight glint in his eyes when he achieved something difficult, the genuine smile that so often graced his features- to the rest of the world, Shinobu must have seemed very innocent indeed.

And even though Miyagi knew this wasn't even close to true, there were times when he still caught himself falling for the act. The bright, clear eyes (when they weren't clouded by a frown or glare) managed to maintain a radiant shine that seemed almost surreal. Even if Miyagi was unsure of a lot of things in their relationship, the one part he would never doubt was that Shinobu would undoubtedly maintain this same atmosphere of pure innocence for a very, very long time.


	11. Proposal

A/N- I really liked how this one came out... Well, I think it's a bit OOC and it might be a little boring in the middle, but I still hope you guys enjoy it! Also, I used another 'ImagineYourOTP' prompt- I'll put it at the end of the chapter, so I don't spoil anything here :3 And as always, reviews are author food- please feed me, the starving author? XD *noms chinese food* I'm not really starving... but reviews and feedback are still appreciated ^^

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11. Proposal _(Egoist)_

"Hey, Hiro-san, let's go out for dinner. Somewhere fancy." Hiroki looked up from the rather sad pile of leftovers in the refrigerator, nodding. There was something like relief behind his eyes, although Nowaki assumed it was simply because he had been saved from having to eat the leftovers from a few night before.

"Okay... Where?" Hiroki asked, straightening up and closing the fridge doors. "I have that gift certificate Akihiko gave me for my birthday, so maybe we could go there if you hadn't already planned something?"

"Hmm... Okay. But if we're going somewhere like that, I need to change." Nowaki looked down at the jeans and t-shirt he had thrown on when he got home earlier that day. "I'll be back in a minute." Hiroki looked down and decided that his own clothes were probably fine to wear out- he'd had a faculty meeting at the university earlier that day, and hadn't had a chance to change once he got home.

He wandered into that bathroom and pulled a comb carefully through his hair, noting that a few pieces were sticking up at odd angles. Once he was satisfied with that, he made his way into the living room and pulled his wallet out of his bag, as well as a small black box which he shoved unceremoniously into his pocket.

"Are you ready?" Nowaki asked, and Hiroki whirled around spasmodically, hoping the other man hadn't noticed anything unusual. Apparently he hadn't, and Hiroki forced himself to relax before nodding slightly.

"How many in your party?" asked a blonde waitress who looked _way_ too happy for her own good.

"Two." Nowaki answered for them. Neither him nor Hiroki had missed the woman's bright blue eyes glancing around to see if they had dates or if it really was just the two of them.

"Oh, alright!" she said, recovering quickly once she saw that they'd figured out her assumption, "Well, if you'll just come right this way, then!" the young woman led them to a table near the floor-to-ceiling window that looked out on the heavily crowded street outside. "Would you like me to get you some waters while you look at the menu?" both men nodded, and the woman walked quickly away.

Neither Hiroki nor Nowaki were particularly used to such prestigious dining- the whole dining room was filled with small two- person tables with flowers and white linen tablecloths. There were large chandeliers casting a warm light over the whole place, and expensive-looking paintings lined the walls.

"Just out of curiosity, what was the occasion for going out tonight?" Hiroki asked as he skimmed the extensive drink menu. "Anything in particular?"

"Of course there's something." Nowaki said with a light smile, being frustratingly vague. "You'll find out what it is soon enough, though." Hiroki scowled, looking back down and busying himself with choosing a drink. It was a bit annoying that Nowaki wasn't explaining himself, but at the same time, he had to admit that the man probably had a good reason, as he always did when doing things like this.

Once their waitress had returned to take their drink orders, Nowaki started a conversation to fill the awkward silence. "So, how was work today? You had a meeting, right?" Hiroki nodded.

"Yeah- I couldn't tell you half of what we talked about, though; Miyagi kept poking me and passing notes and just generally being an idiot." Nowaki smiled.

"Well, I just hope the meeting wasn't about anything too terribly important, then." Nowaki said, skimming over the menu options. Nothing was particularly calling out to him at the moment, so he looked up to watch Hiroki.

"It wasn't." the professor mumbled, not looking up from the menu. "It was just a meeting to formally tell all of the staff about the schedule and new grading system for next year, but all of that stuff's of the school's website already anyway." Hiroki looked up, probably feeling Nowaki's eyes looking at him, and a crease formed between his eyebrows, bringing them together slightly.

"Anyway, Miyagi kept on passing me stupid notes and doodles the whole time like some middle-schooler so I wouldn't have been able to pay attention anyway, even if I'd wanted to." Nowaki smiled again, this time because the demon professor had actually admitted to not wanting to pay attention during a meeting. Usually he gave off a 'work first, everything else second' kind of aura, but Nowaki had mastered the art of breaking it down to figure out what his lover truly felt.

The waitress returned a moment later, taking their dinner orders and leaving them to talk while their meals were cooked.

"How was work for you, Nowaki?" Hiroki asked, unsure how to fill the silence that had suddenly enveloped the two. "Earlier this morning, or late last night, or... whenever it was." Nowaki smiled, taking a sip of his drink before answering,

"It was fine, I guess. One of the littler kids who's been an inpatient in the hospital for a few months is finally getting released, so that was obviously really great news. Um... Now much happened, really. I wished I was at home, in bed with you, and not working, but thats true every time I have a night shift." Hiroki blushed lightly- even after so long of them being together, it was a little embarrassing that he still blushed so easily at hearing such things.

"Y-yeah, it's definitely more lonely when you're not around..." Hiroki half-mumbled, hoping he hadn't sounded too terribly stupid saying something like that. Apparently he hadn't, as Nowaki reached not-so-discreetly across the table to grasp the professor's hand. Hiroki struggled to pull it away only a moment later, however, saying something about them being out in public.

"Oh, come on, Hiro-san, I'm sure it's pretty obvious to anyone who's paying attention that we're on a date~!" Despite the fact that his tone was hushed, the words seemed to carry more than if he had said them in a normal, conversational tone. "And anyway, it's not like it really matters anymore, right? I mean, now that marriage has been legalized-" Hiroki shook his head furiously.

"Idiot! don't say stuff like that, now it's _really_ obvious..." Luckily, Nowaki didn't have time to think of a reply because at that very moment, their overly-bubbly waitress returned with their food. Neither had really paid attention to what the other had ordered, and once the waitress had left, Nowaki said through a smile,

"Really, Hiro-san? The most expensive piece of meat on the menu?" Hiroki shrugged.

"Akihiko gave me a gift certificate for two hundred and fifty dollars." Hiroki said, "I think I can afford to get filet mignon if I want to." conversation tapered off a bit after that, both greatly enjoying the high-quality meal. Although as well as his steak, Hiroki's thoughts almost drifted somewhere near nervousness or worry when he thought of the small black box in his pocket.

After a while, though, Hiroki noticed the expression of complete and utter contentment in the eyes of the man across from him. "Um... Nowaki, is there something you want to-" Hiroki never finished this statement, however.

Because Nowaki had gotten out of his chair, and was currently kneeling in front of Hiroki. On one knee. And pulling a small box out of his pocket that looked strikingly similar to the small box in his own pocket. "Hiro-san..." Nowaki took a deep breath, then opened the box to reveal a simple gold webbing band, "Will you marry me?" Hiroki's head stopped. He froze for a moment, not moving other than the shaking fingers that were drifting towards his pocket.

He pulled it out and opened it, and his fingers were at this point shaking so badly that he struggled not to drop it. But he managed, and the expression on Nowaki's face when he opened it to reveal his own ring intended for the dark-haired doctor was one he would never forget.

"H- Hiro-san, you..." For once, Nowaki was speechless.

"... Yes. Yes, I'll marry you, you big idiot." and the applause of the rest of the restaurant's occupants was completely drowned out by the rushing in his ears as Nowaki reached up to kiss him, full on the mouth.

And for the first time ever, Hiroki didn't care that it was a public display of affection- not in the slightest.

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And here's the prompt I used- (Imagine Person A of your OTP extravagantly proposing to Person B. When they ask, "Will you marry me?" Person B awkwardly pulls out the ring they had planned to propose to Person A with out of their pocket.)


	12. Jealousy

A/N- So, this one's for KyoKaraMaohGirl, who requested a jealous Usagi. I hope this meets your expectations, since it was definitely fun to write! On another note, I have family coming to visit for a few days so I'm not positive if I'll be able to update daily the next few days- I'll try as hard as I can, though!

And thank you to everyone who's reviewed so far, it means a lot to know people are enjoying reading these as much as I love writing them~! ^^

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12. Jealousy (_Romantica)_

Usami sighed, pulling the wide hat down so that it further concealed him from view. He chanced a glance in front of him at Misaki, who was completely oblivious to his presence and talking animatedly with his school friend, Sumi.

"- Really? Are you serious?" They were, from what Usami had gathered, talking about some viral video Sumi had seen the night before. "Why would anyone even _do_ that?" Usami couldn't help but notice how freely Misaki chatted and laughed with his friend- it surprised him considerably, given how rarely such a thing occurred between Usami and the brunette when they were at home.

And maybe that was mostly his fault- but still, it hurt him a little inside to see that other people besides himself could make his lover happy, maybe even more so than Usami himself. What did this straightforward, obnoxious upperclassman have that he didn't? Why could Misaki laugh so easily at Sumi's jokes, when his own got, at best, a weak smile in response.

"-I'm not kidding! And the video went on for like twenty minutes, too! It just kept doing it, over and over!" Sumi's voice rang out, and Usami gritted his teeth against the noise. There was something about the whole situation that just pissed him off. Maybe he was being rather stalkerish, following the two college students without their knowledge, but he couldn't help it; Misaki was something he had to protect, and that involved knowing what he was up to when they weren't together.

"How is that even possible? That's so weird!" Misaki laughed again, sending bolts of envy through Usami as, again, the laughter was directed towards someone other than himself. It shocked him that the pain the and inflicted was physically painful, rushing through his veins and consuming his whole existence.

Usami's eyes narrowed as Sumi leaned closer to Misaki- the silver-haired author's blood nearly _boiled_ when he thought that he might kiss _his Misaki_- But no, he appeared to simply whisper something into his ear. Although this action wasn't exactly what Usami would consider appropriate, either, it was much better than what he had assumed would happen.

Usami had only half-formed the thought of wondering what had been said, when Misaki whirled around and crossed his arms, a deep scowl on his face as he made contact with Usami. _Oh... He probably noticed me following them and told Misaki... _Usami thought before saying,

"You're coming with me." the author said, taking a few steps forward and reaching for Misaki's arm. "Now."

"But-" Misaki tried to pull out of his grip, glancing over to his friend for assistance.

"No 'but's', come on." Usami asserted, half-dragging Misaki away to where he had parked his car. Once they were out of earshot he grumbled, "I don't like that guy."

"Sumi-sempai? You always say that, but you know, you've never really given any good reason _why_, Usagi-san." Usami opened his mouth, but no words came out. He took a moment to think- he hated the kid, there was no doubt about that, but he had a hard time putting a finger on exactly _why_.

"Are you... jealous? Of him spending time with me?" Misaki glanced back to make sure Sumi was really out of earshot and not trailing behind them. "Stupid Usagi..."

"I'm not _jealous_; I'm possessive. And I don't like people playing with the things that belong to me. Especially you." Misaki swallowed, eyes widening as the full effect of the words soaked in.

"I don't belong to you, idiot..." Usami didn't have a chance to say anything before he continued, "... And it's not like I'd let him do anything, anyway."

"Oh, really? And why is that?" Usami asked, half-doubting the words.

"Because he's not you..." Usami stopped dead at hearing these words, grabbing Misaki's arm and kissing him full on the mouth, ignoring the stares and occasional glare cast their direction. Any remaining envy or anger vanished completely, even if only for the moment, because Usami could rest assured that Misaki was indeed his, and not anyone else's.


	13. Rain

A/N- So many of these have been Egoist so far... I really need to write the other couples more... But Egoist is just so cute, how could anyone _not_ love them? :3 Anyways, reviews much appreciated, blah blah blah... you guys know the drill! ^-^

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13. Rain (_Egoist)_

There were more than a few ways that Hiroki was like a cat- he was prideful, feisty, aggressive... And he hated the rain. Well, that wasn't really true. But he _did_ hate the rain when it was the end of June and an entirely unpredicted rainstorm chose to sweep through the city. On the one day that the train chose to break down.

The cinnamon-haired professor's scowl was even more pronounced than usual, and every icy raindrop that hit his face or slid down the back of his shirt seemed to be mocking him.

"Dammit..." he mumbled, trying to keep his bag protected underneath the light jacket he was wearing to try to keep the books and students' work from getting any more soaked than they already were.

Of course, it was just his luck that the train had chosen to break down _that_ day, of all days- it was the first day in almost two weeks that both he and Nowaki had the evening off, and now, thanks to this damn _rain_, their potential dinner together had been ruined.

Finally spotting a bus shelter, Hiroki ducked under it and pulled out his cell phone. Thankfully it wasn't wet, and Hiroki flipped it open to call the first person on speed-dial. As it rang, waiting for the other end to pick up, he watched the thick downpour come down. It actually wouldn't be all that bad, really, if he wasn't stuck with walking in it.

"Hiro-san?" Nowaki sounded confused, worried, and relieved all at once, "Are you on your way home? Did something happen? Are you okay?" Hiroki sighed, before answering,

"I'm fine, except that it's raining and the train broke down and now I'm stuck walking and-" Hiroki's anger at his general situation was obvious, and Nowaki responded calmly with,

"Oh- do you want me to come find you? You don't have an umbrella, right?" Hiroki smiled slightly at this- it was amazing how such a small, simple offer had the ability to cheer him up, even after such a generally rotten day.

"Um... I'm pretty close to home, I just figured I'd let you know why I was late- I'll be home in about ten or fifteen minutes, probably." It really wouldn't be fair to Nowaki if he had to leave the warmth and comfort of his- _their_- apartment, just to find his lover who was stupid enough to forget an umbrella on an obviously cloudy day.

"Where are you?" Nowaki asked firmly, not about to let the professor walk home in the rain for any longer.

"Um... the bus stop on South Sakine Street. But really, I'll be fine walking home, you don't have to-" Nowaki cut him off.

"But I _want_ to. Don't move, okay?" Hiroki sighed again, nodding even though he knew the other man couldn't see it.

"I won't." the line went dead after that, and Hiroki flipped his phone closed. The occasional thunder overhead and the constant pounding of rain on the cement were the only sounds he could hear for about twenty minutes, until-

"Hiro-san!" Nowaki came into view, running towards him and completely soaked- and, for some reason, without an umbrella in sight.

"Why didn't you bring an umbrella, idiot?" Hiroki asked through clenched teeth.

"I couldn't find one- but I wasn't just going to let you walk home in the rain by yourself, silly!" Hiroki frowned. Nowaki was soaked, maybe even more than he was, as he was wearing only a long- sleeved t-shirt and jeans to protect himself from the weather.

"You could've just called me back and said so, then! There was no need for you to come out here and get completely soaking wet too, not when-" Hiroki's ranting was cut off by Nowaki pulling him into a suffocating hug.

"I couldn't wait another minute to see you, Hiro-san." He said into the top of Hiroki's hair. "I love you..." Hiroki wrapped his arms around his lover, giving him a tentative squeeze.

"Y-yeah... let's just go home, okay?" Nowaki placed a light, chaste kiss on his forehead and nodded before pulling away and slipping his hand into Hiroki's smaller one.

"Of course, Hiro-san." And with that, the two set off, hand in hand, not caring in the slightest that they were soaked to the bone and freezing cold. They had each other, after all, what more could they want?

Hiroki couldn't help thinking that maybe he didn't mind the rain so much anymore.


	14. Whisper

A/N- So, what I said before about family visiting... Well, I'm staying in the spare room wit the computer and my laptop and my phone, so I'm probably going to be updating more instead of less like I thought :3

And my second cousin is super cute~! He's two and adorable and... *shot*

I'll stop now... Anyway, this one's SIH again, hope you guys don't mind. And as always, thanks to everyone who's reviewed and feel free to let me know what you want to see in the future!

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14. Whisper (_Takano x Ritsu)_

"... _I love you..."_

Ritsu blushed to the tips of his ears, looking away quickly._ Had he finally managed to say it? After so long struggling and stumbling, had he really managed to declare his love?_ He chanced a quick glance through his bangs at the other man, who was still staring straight ahead, looking unaffected. _He didn't... hear me?_

"D-did you hear me?" Ritsu asked, and Takano turned to look at him.

"No, what did you say? The rain's so loud you're going to have to speak up, Onodera" He was either holding a perfect poker face, or had genuinely not heard him- it was impossible to tell.

"I... uh..." _He couldn't say it again. Not after all it had taken to say it the first time. _"Well, it's your own fault if you didn't hear me!" Takano frowned, replying with,

"Not really- if you want me to hear what you have to say and you're mumbling, it's not technically my fault." Ritsu snapped at that moment, turning to his superior and yelling,

"I love you, dammit! That's what I said, okay? And it's your own fault if you couldn't hear me because I'm _not_ going to say it again so you can just-" his hand flew up to cover his mouth as he realized what he had just said. Takano turned, eyes wide, and pulled the hand away from Ritsu's face, replacing it instantly with his mouth.

This kiss was unlike all of the others they had shared recently, in that it was gentle and patient. (Of course, it was still persistent, but this time slightly less so). As Takano moved his mouth against the younger man's, he waited to be allowed access to his mouth instead of shoving his way inside, as he usually did. And once he was allowed in, which really didn't take very long, he savored every moment of finally having his affections reciprocated by the man he had loved for ten long years.


	15. Truth

A/N- So, what better to do with the prompt 'truth' than play a game of truth-or-dare? XD I was actually going to write a lemon for this, but... nope. I chickened out. Which might be why the beginning is kinda... you'll see. Well, whatever, I hope you guys enjoy this anyway~!

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15. Truth (_Romantica)_

Misaki opened his eyes, taking a moment to absorb the odd situation. His wrists were tied with something (he couldn't see what), and he was lying on Usami's bed. He noted absently that he was, at least, still wearing the clothes he had been wearing earlier.

"W-what the hell's going on?" he muttered to himself, trying to sit up. This was, however, impossible due to the way whatever was wrapped around his wrists was tied to the bed's headboard, as well. Unable to think of anything else to do, he took a deep breath and yelled at the top of his lungs, "USAGI-SAN!?" It only took a moment before he could hear footsteps walking down the hall, and the door opened to reveal the silver-haired author.

"Yes, Misaki?" The man's completely calm voice was more than a little unnerving. "Oh, this? I figured we could play a game." Misaki frowned, sure that whatever game the perverted rabbit wanted to play would _not_ be something he would want to participate in. He knew Usami wanted him to ask what the game was- and although he didn't particularly enjoy being so compliant, he was genuinely concerned about what was to come.

"And what game would that be?" he asked incredulously, trying to compose himself so that he wouldn't look quite so submissive, despite his current position. Usami took a seat on the side of the bed, a wide grin on his face.

"Well, truth or dare, of course!" Misaki's eyes widened, and he fumbled with whatever was tying him up (it felt like a scarf, maybe) in a futile attempt at escape. "So, Misaki, truth or dare?" Misaki frowned, trying to figure out which would be the lesser of the two evils presented to him.

"... Truth?" It ended up sounding like a question, due to how much his voice was wavering. Usami seemed to be a bit disappointed by this answer, but as per the rules of the game, he had to think of a question to ask.

"Hmm... In that case, what do you really think about that mangaka bastard?" It took Misaki a moment to realize who he was talking about.

"You mean Ijuuin-sensei?" Usami nodded. Misaki was honestly surprised at this- he had expected the game to be a bit more... _dirty_, considering who had chosen to start it. He didn't really have any complaints, though, and answered,

"Um... well, I think he's a very talented artist... and he's really good at what he does, b-but... I don't think I'd ever really think of him romantically." he hoped this was the answer Usami was looking for, as Misaki felt like the author was just looking for some excuse to punish him, if he didn't give the expected answer.

I see... well, it's my turn then, right?" Usami looked at Misaki pointedly, waiting for the boy to ask him.

"O- oh... Well then, Usagi-san, truth or dare?" Usami hardly waited for the sentence to be out of his mouth before declaring,

"Dare." Misaki hesitated- he had no idea what he should dare the man to do. If it was something stupid he would surely be mocked, but if it was anything even remotely provocative-

"Um... I dare you to..." Misaki finally settled on something,, "I _dare_ you to untie me from this goddamn bed." Usami looked more than a little bit irritated.

"But, if I were to do that, it would defeat the purpose of having done it in the first place." Misaki wondered how long it would take before he could ever understand exactly how Usami came to some of his 'logical conclusions'. The only answer Misaki could think of was the childish retort of,

"But it's a dare. You have to do it." Usami seemed to realize that in order to keep this little game going, he had to play by the rules- no matter how much he disliked it. He crawled across the bed so that he was behind Misaki, and untied his hands. After rubbing a bit of feeling back into his wrists (for they had been tied tighter than he initially realized), Usami asked,

"Truth or dare?" Misaki, again without hesitation, answered,

"Truth." Usami paused trying to think of a good question to ask. He had really been hoping Misaki would choose dare, as he was much better at thinking of dare questions than truth ones.

"Hmm... When was the last time you dreamed about me?" Misaki crossed his arms, obviously not pleased by the question.

"What kind of a question is that?" Misaki asked, but his brow furrowed in thought at the pointed glare Usami shot his way.

"Um... Maybe two, three days ago?" Misaki said as he remembered.

"Oh, really?" Usami's notorious pervert smirk crossed his face. "And what about me did you dream, exactly?" Misaki's cheeks flushed bright red, and he looked away from Usami.

"N-nothing..." Usami hadn't really expected such a reaction, and had opened his mouth to pry further but Misaki cut him off before he could, saying, "No- I answered your question. It's your turn. Truth or dare?"

"Truth, I guess." It was clear Misaki wasn't planning on daring him to do anything like he had planned, so he figured he might as well answer whatever Misaki might be wondering. No matter how much he wanted to throw this plan to the wind and ravish Misaki right then and there, he held back- just barely.

"Um..." There was one question that had been in the back of Misaki's mind for a while now, but he was hesitant to ask it. But, since he had a chance now, he figured me might as well ask- he genuinely wanted to know, after all. "Usagi-san... I know you used to love my brother, b-but... do you still? O-or, when you say you l-love me, do you really...? Um, I mean..." Usami's expression was unreadable for a moment, and as little as Misaki wanted to admit it, he was waiting with bated breath to her what the man had to say on this.

"I did love Takahiro... before I met you. But now, I promise, I love you and no one else, Misaki." Misaki's cheeks flushed an even deeper shade of red at hearing this, and he grasped a pillow from next to him, fighting the urge to cover his face with it. He settled for hugging it tightly to his chest, and avoided the rabbit's eyes for as long as possible before he heard Usami say, "... Misaki?"

Dark chocolate orbs looked up, a combination of hope and doubt swimming in their depths. Misaki let a slight smile grace his lips for a moment before mumbling, " Thank you, Usagi-san."

Usami nodded, brushing off the confession as though it weren't a big deal. "So, you can't choose truth three times in a row- guess that means you get dare this time."

"... Oh. I... I guess, yeah." Misaki didn't even want to think about what his lover was going to make him do- being him, it wouldn't be anything good.

"Kiss me." Usami said, never breaking his poker face.

"W-what?" Misaki couldn't help it this time, and he pulled the pillow up to cover his still-pink-tinged face.

"That's your dare. I dare you to kiss me." Misaki's first instinct was to refuse, but he figured that wouldn't go over well- so, after taking a moment to mentally prepare himself, Misaki put down the pillow and scooted closer to Usami, trying as hard as he could to not look down and end up as helplessly submissive as he always was.

Usami's smug smile was doing nothing to help, as it was clear the sight of Misaki so flustered was one he greatly enjoyed. Misaki leaned over slowly, closing his eyes so that he couldn't see Usami's damn grinning face. Sooner than he had expected, Misaki met Usami's lips with his own- and the fact that the man didn't try to dominate him the moment they made contact was a surprising first.

Misaki realized that Usami expected him to take dominance- so, although it was difficult and he continued to blush bright pink, he hesitantly began to move his mouth against the other man's. He pulled away after only a few seconds, though, picking back up the pillow and resuming his previous position.

"Huh. I didn't expect you to actually _do_ it." Usami said. "But... thank you, Misaki."


	16. Trust

A/N- I almost missed a day updating this! Well... It's not technically my fault- I got dragged to a model airplane show, and I didn't have my phone with me so I couldn't write while I was there. But at least I got this done! Oh, and to lionfish13- I started writing a Terrorist story for you, but that pairing's so hard to write that I ended up writing this one instead. I'll try to have the Terrorist one posted for you tomorrow or the day after at the latest!

And also (I don't know if anyone actually reads these things...) I'm going to a summer camp, so I'm going to try my best to keep my updates daily- but if I miss a day, I didn't die or anything, I was just too busy. (If I miss 2 days, though, I really did die. XD)

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16. Trust (Ijuuin x Misaki)

The sudden, unexpected knocking at the door jerked Ijuuin Kyo out of his nearly-asleep state at his cluttered worktable. He was seriously considering ignoring whoever it was and going back to 'work', but the person knocked again, more urgently this time. He pulled himself to a standing position, stiff joints popping after so long in the same uncomfortable position.

When he finally opened the apartment door, the person he saw there was the very last person he would have expected to have show up at his doorstep unannounced- since it was relatively close to his deadline, he had expected that it was someone from Marukawa, maybe, but he would have never thought that _this_ person would drop in for a surprise visit.

Takahashi Misaki stood there- and he looked, in a word, miserable.

"M-Misaki-kun?" The brunette looked up at him through the bangs covering his forehead, his cheeks flushed and tearstained, as though he had just stopped crying. "Um... what're you doing here?" Ijuuin stood out of the way so that Misaki could enter the apartment, which he did, slipping off his shoes before finally saying,

"Y-you said I could stop by if I ever needed to, right?" The pain and desperation made his voice crack; Ijuuin ignored this however, replying with,

"Of course, Misaki-kun! But... what's wrong? Did something happen?" Misaki looked up, brown eyes somehow more piercing than usual. His hesitancy to disclose any information or answer his question made the mangaka wonder if the college student's older boyfriend was the cause of his distress.

"I'd... really rather not talk about it. I'm sorry to intrude like this, Ijuuin-sensei." Deciding that he would press the boy to explain once he was settled down a bit, Ijuuin said,

"Ah... It's really alright. And actually, while you're here, do you think you could help me with the last few pages for this month's chapter of 'The Kan'?" Misaki's expression brightened noticeably at the prospect of helping his idol create the manga he practically worshipped, nodding eagerly before realizing-

"I... I'd love to, but it's just that I'm really not good at drawing..." Ijuuin patted Misaki's shoulder reassuringly, smiling as he said,

"It's fine- Here, come with me and I can show you what I have left to do." The artist really didn't technically need the extra help all that badly, but he knew how much the boy loved his work and figured that if it would help to cheer up the obviously upset teen, it was worth it.

It wasn't Misaki's first time entering the workroom, but it was the first time he had seen it since the man had come out of his terrible slump of writer's block- and it looked considerably better at present than it had on his last visit. Most of the trash was in the bin in the corner, and the majority of things were cleaned up and put away, except for the few he had been using most recently.

"Um... here, I'll get you a chair. You can look through those if you want, and see what you think we should still add." Misaki's heart swelled with happiness at hearing the man he admired so much ask for his personal opinion on what he thought should still be added. Once the older man left the room, Misaki walked over to the desk and picked up a couple of sheets, careful to keep them in order and not smudge the drawings.

Even though it was just a few short pages of filler, Misaki was still in awe at the skill and precision used to draw them. He honestly couldn't find anything to fix on any of them, and told Ijuuin so when he returned, holding a folding chair, a moment later.

"Really? I'm flattered that you think so, Misaki-kun, but I'm sure there's a lot I can still do to make them better. Like if I shade this-" the artist picked up a drawing pen and added a few careful lines of shading to the left side of the main character's face. "See how that makes the whole thing seem a lot more serious?" Misaki nodded, surprised by how much difference the few simple additions made.

"Oh... yeah, that does make it look a lot different!" Misaki exclaimed, feeling much more motivated to help than he had before. "But... I'm not really sure if I can do that-" Ijuuin smiled- he was glad for he distraction from his work, and the bright eagerness radiating off of the younger man was rather contagious.

"Well... here, I'll let you try it on an old one, then." Ijuuin got up from his seat at the desk and rifled through a filing cabinet against the opposite wall, returning a few minutes later with a drawing that Misaki instantly recognized as the sketch for the special-edition cover of volume eight. "See how you do this? You have to make sure the shadows look realistic, or the whole effect is lost." Ijuuin demonstrated by shading some of the character's hair, before sliding the paper in Misaki's direction.

When Misaki reached over to take the pen from the artist's hand, Ijuuin's long, slim fingers wrapped over his own hand. Without showing any response to Misaki's soft "E- eh?", he guided the college student's hand over the paper's surface, showing him the best way to shade that part of the drawing.

"Think you can do it on your own now?" Ijuuin asked, releasing Misaki's hand. The brunette nodded with determination, and when he carefully sketched the marks across the drawing, they looked professional enough to rival the mangaka's own.

"Wow- you said you couldn't draw, but that's actually really good!" Misaki couldn't help but think the reason it had turned out well was because the man he admired so much had taught him so well.

"Um... T-thank you very much." Misaki said, trying to appear humble while on the inside he felt like he was going to explode from happiness.

"Misaki..." the emotion behind the other man's voice had changed, and Misaki looked up to give him a slightly questioning look. "I don't know what happened between you and your lover, but I just want to say thank you-" Misaki's eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, "- for coming to me. It really means a lot that you trust me enough to come here when you were so clearly distraught."

It took Misaki a moment to soak in the words, and when he finally parted his lips to reply, he found he couldn't speak because of the lips which crashed against his. Misaki's eyes widened in surprise, and he pulled away as though he had been shocked. "I love you." the mangaka said, as though stating common knowledge, "And I know you don't love me back- not in the same way, anyway. But really, it's enough just knowing you can trust me when you need to most."


	17. Rumors

A/N- I missed yesterday D: And I had to type this on my phone while I was at community service summer camp, so I'm really sorry in advance for the ton of stupid mistakes I'm sure are in it! Also... this one kinda sucks. I really wanted to rewrite it or just start over from scratch altogether, but I didn't have time and I really wanted to at least upload something... So, sorry in advance about the crappy/ awkward/ stupid-ness. I'm really hoping the next ones will be better.

I'd ask for reviews, but I don't even deserve them this chapter, honestly. (Wow, I think that still counts as asking you to review... Whatever. Sorry for rambling. I'll stop now.)

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Rumors (_Egoist)_

"... Did you hear? They're saying Kamijou-sensei-"

"Really? _Him_? But it just doesn't seem like-"

"-Haven't you heard? Kamijou's-"

When these raging rumors reached a certain cinnamon-haired professor only a few days after their origin, they were _not_ tolerated well. In his very first class of the day, he decided that he would have to put a stop to these rumors once and for all.

Once he was finished with the required material for that day's lecture, he called the class's attention back to him- and they noticed that his tone was noticeably different from how it usually was during lectures.

"So-" Hiroki cleared hit throat loudly, attracting the attention of the few students who were ignoring him, "-I've heard that there have been some rumors going around, regarding my, ah...sexual preference. And I'd just like to say, I see absolutely no way that sort of thing would affect you in any way. If you feel that sort of thing is affecting my teaching ability, feel free to request a class transfer- because I'm not going to tolerate that kind of thing in this class." a few students nodded, a couple seemed pensive- but one, a girl who had failed the class last time and was retaking it, raised her hand and boldly asked,

"So, you're not denying it? You... Liking men, I mean?" a vein ticked at Hiroki's jaw and he said through clenched teeth,

"Again- I really don't see why that sort of thing would concern you." the girl shrugged, not bothered by his violent tone in the slightest, and slouched back into her seat to await the bell.

"Have I made myself clear?" he asked, a lethal glare sweeping around the room as if daring anyone else to say anything. While on the outside he was seething, on the inside he was completely mortified that he had just all but admitted he was gay to his entire class.

A collective nod swept over the room, and the bell finally rang a moment later. It took a moment for the students to clear out, and he gathered his things to head to his office until his next class. However, when he reached the doorway, it was obstructed by none other than a certain tall, raven-haired lover.

Who appeared to be in shock.

"Ah, Nowaki- what are you doing here?" Hiroki asked, a bit awkwardly.

"I came to drop off some papers- but that's not... I mean, you just practically admitted you love me to your whole class!" Nowaki seemed to be in shock, his mouth still gaping like a fish out of water.

"I wouldn't say I said _that, _exactly- there have just been some rumors going around, and I decided I should but a stop to them before they blow up into something completely ridiculous." Nowaki smiled, before replying,

"Something like what I heard about Miyagi-sensei supposedly being a prostitute?" it was Hiroki's turn for his jaw to drop in shock.

"W-whaaaat?" Nowaki burst out laughing at his partner's reaction, before clarifying,

"That's what I heard a few girls talking about when they were leaving a minute ago- but that's what I mean, some of the rumors these kids come up with are completely ridiculous." Nowaki paused in thought for a moment. "Well actually... I've met that Miyagi guy. He could very well be a-"

Hiroki reached up and clamped a hand over the taller man's mouth. "Don't even say it." But apparently, the image of Miyagi selling himself to people was so completely comical that he couldn't help but burst out laughing at the thought.

"A small rumor like that probably would have faded out after a few days, maybe a week at most, you know- but, I'm kind of glad you said that, Hiro-san." Nowaki reached out as though to brush Hiroki's bangs away from his face, but stopped when he remembered that they were in his lover's workplace, and such a thing would be unacceptable.

"Why? It's not like it was really that big of a deal..." Hiroki half-mumbled, "I just wanted them to stop talking about me, mostly."

"Still... Thank you." Nowaki's mood turned suddenly much less serious as he said, "Oh, I almost forgot! I came to bring you some lunch- you ran out the door so quick this morning, you forgot it." Nowaki held out a brown paper sack, which the professor took gratefully.

"Thanks." he said, looking to see that his lover had packed all of his favorite foods- not that it was really a surprise, given his tendencies to spoil him, but it was still a nice thing for him to have done.

"Well... I guess I should go now. My shift at the hospital starts soon, so I'll see you at home later, okay?" Hiroki nodded, and was about to give Nowaki an appropriately chaste goodbye when his boyfriend looked both ways down the hallway, making sure there was no one there, before leaning down to kiss the professor sweetly on the lips.

"U-uh, yeah, I'll see you later..." Hiroki mumbled. He didn't feel as embarrassed as he usually would have at such public contact, due to the slight residual humiliation from having practically declared his homosexuality to his class.

Maybe, Hiroki thought, those rumors hadn't really been quite so bad after all.


	18. Cold

A/N- Yeah... this is another short one... But I have another one I wrote today, so hopefully I can get that up later tonight~! (And as always, reviews are appreciated, just sayin')

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18. Cold (_Egoist)_

"Nowaki... I'm cold." Hiroki mumbled, taking a slightly awkward half-step in his lover's direction. The weather was, in fact, not cold at all- it was a sunny spring day, and the two were sitting, leaning against an old tree, enjoying the sunlight.

"Mm?" Nowaki turned to glance at Hiroki. "It's not..." Hiroki, too shy to say what he really wanted, repeated;

"No- I mean, um, I'm _cold_." with the added emphasis, Nowaki finally understood just what the older man was asking for. Without any hesitation, Nowaki pulled his lover closer into an almost suffocating hug, pressing himself as close as possible to his body.

It was actually rather amazing, how perfectly their bodies fit together- whether they were doing something as innocent as hugging, or _other_ things.

"You know, you could just say you want me to hug you, Hiro-san." Hiroki shook his head slightly, unintentionally brushing his cinnamon-hued hair against Nowaki's nose.

"Whatever..." the professor mumbled, resisting the sudden urge to turn over and burrow his head into Nowaki's neck. Instead he inhaled deeply, enjoying the smell of the fresh spring air mixed with the light perfume that naturally clung to Nowaki.

The moment was completely perfect, and Hiroki couldn't help but wish that moment could last forever- Nowaki by his side, no worries to speak of, and completely in love.


	19. Beach

A/N- Here's some Terrorist for Lionfish13 :) I honestly had no muse while writing this and it took me forever... I hope it's okay. This couple's definitely the hardest to write D: And I feel like, even though I worked on it for three days, it _still _turned out lower than my usual standard. Eh... I tried.

Anyways... Please review and let me know what I can do better in the future? Particularly with this couple, because I know I need to work on it... :)

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19. Beach (_Terrorist)_

Miyagi had always had a bittersweet opinion when it came to beaches- he loved the sound of crashing waves, the smell of seawater on the air- but at the same time he despised them, the reason being that so many precious memories of his deceased teacher had taken place on a beach.

There was no way Shinobu could have known this, however, when he asked if Miyagi wanted to go on a beach trip that weekend. Shinobu's father had gone out of town on a business conference, leaving him yet again in the older professor's care. And so, Miyagi found himself on a beach with his own personal terrorist- and with decidedly mixed feelings about the whole thing.

They had, at least, managed to find a nearly-empty beach to spend their day on. There were a few families with smaller children close to the water, but it wasn't populated enough that the sound of the waves lapping at the shore or seagulls calling were dulled. Shinobu looked over to Miyagi, unsure what to do now- he knew he had been the one to propose this beach trip in the first place, but something about the whole thing just seemed off. It was as though there was an aura of sadness (or maybe nostalgia?) around Miyagi, and Shinobu wasn't quite sure what to do about it.

"Um... Is something wrong?" Shinobu asked. He wanted to reach out and grab Miyagi's hand, but he could tell instinctively that with the mood the man was currently in, it wouldn't be a good idea.

"No, I'm fine." Miyagi replied a moment later, although it sounded incredibly forced, even to him. "Just... thinking, I guess." Shinobu nodded, deciding to ignore the man next to him for the moment and take in his surroundings. There were large rock formations cutting off this section of the beach from the rest of the coastline, creating a small private cove. The water, which sparkled a clear blue-green in the blinding sunlight, could be seen for miles until the sheer distance made it seem to meet the sky.

"I'm glad you picked this beach- it's really nice." Miyagi finally said, although a bit flatly, continuing to walk down to the water's edge. Shinobu followed suit, dropping his things in a small pile next to the professor's. It took a few minutes to lay out towels and set up a beach umbrella, before Shinobu finally gave up on being patient and grabbed Miyagi's hand, half-dragging him in the direction of the water.

The feeling of the warm sand growing cooler as they reached the water's edge, the sound of waves lapping and hissing over the ground, the feeling of Miyagi's hand, lightly dusted with sandy grit, clasping his own- Shinobu thought the whole thing was absolutely perfect. Until a wave came up and washed over his feet, anyway.

"Ah-! It's so cold!" he exclaimed, running a few steps away from the water. "I thought ocean water was supposed to be _warm_?"Miyagi, who was now standing ankle-deep in the water, turned around and said,

"Who told you that? The ocean water's _freezing_. But it feels good once you get used to it." Miyagi took another step out, and this time a wave washed up to his knees. Since neither of them were wearing bathing suits, it was as far out as he dared to go without the risk of getting soaked.

Shinobu took a deep breath, and ran back into the water to meet Miyagi. An unusually large wave chose this moment to crash into the shore, which hit Shinobu squarely in the stomach and knocked him over, pushing and tumbling him back to shore.

By the time he sat up, coughing and trying to get sand out of his eyes and mouth, he had already been pushed back to where he had started. Shinobu glared furiously at Miyagi, who had burst out laughing at the sight of a soaking wet, sandy, grumpy, irritated Shinobu.

It seemed karma was on Shinobu's side, though, because the next wave to roll in crashed full-force against Miyagi's back, knocking him over. Although he wasn't pushed quite as far as Shinobu had been, he was still soaked and even more freezing than he had been before.

"L-looks like the t-tide's coming in, huh?" Shinobu said through chattering teeth. Miyagi nodded and, once he had stood up, reached a hand over to help Shinobu up.

"Yeah... let's go get towels. I don't know about you, but I'm kinda done with this for now." Shinobu nodded, teeth still clicking together from cold. He pulled himself to his feet, shivering as the seaside breeze which had seemed so refreshing before chilled him to the bone. They made their way back to where they had laid out their towels not ten minutes before, and settled down to warm up in the sun.

"Have you been having fun so far, Shu-chin?" Miyagi asked, glancing over at him.

"Uh-huh... But..." Miyagi's eyebrows drew closer together, in confusion at his younger charge's sudden change of mood. "What was wrong before? Earlier, when we first got here, there was something- I mean, I know you probably won't tell me, but..." Miyagi, in a slightly uncharacteristic show of affection, wrapped his arm around Shinobu's shoulders.

"Ah- It's just that... well, back when my teacher first found out that she was... y'know... Well, we spent a lot of time on the beach. She loved the beach- something about how it's always changing, and it wipes out every trace you leave behind, even footprints." Shinobu glanced over to see that his lover was gazing out over the water, but his eyes were glazed over in a way that made it clear he was mentally back in the time when he had been in love with his teacher.

"... Oh." Shinobu leaned over, resting his head against Miyagi's chest. He hadn't meant to dredge up any of the ghosts in Miyagi's past, but in seemed that even with as long as they had been together, he never knew quite when to tread lightly or let issues drop.

"Sorry- I'll stop talking about that. I'm here to spend time with you, after all, not think about things I can't change that are already in the past." Shinobu nodded, glad that the man understood his feelings without him having to struggle to put them into words.

"Do you want to go back in the water?" Miyagi asked, only to receive a frantic head-shake in reply.

" 's too cold. I just wanna sit here..." Shinobu pressed himself closer to Miyagi, fighting the sudden drowsiness that had washed over him. The sound of the surf and seagulls, the sun shining down, and his lover's reassuring presence next to him all combined to form a perfect place to take a nap.

Shifting so that he was resting his head in Miyagi's lap, Shinobu gave in to his sleepiness and allowed himself to fall asleep- warm, comfy, and content.


	20. Dark

A/N- So, here's part two of what I may or may not turn into a Hiroki x Shinobu mini-series. I have to admit, this pairing's kinda grown on me :3 I don't know what all of you think about it, but as long as nobody tells me they absolutely hate the non-canon pairings, I'll keep writing them~! ^^ (Thanks again to Sylvia Lee for suggesting this pairing!)

Just a note- this drabble has nothing to do with the prompt. But I couldn't find a prompt to write this for, and I couldn't find anything else to write for this prompt, so I guess it works. Maybe. Kinda. Yeah... not really.

Reviews... yeah, you guys know by now. I love them. Too much for my own good, to be honest XD

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20. Dark (_Hiroki x Shinobu)_

"Shinobu...? What are you doing here?" Hiroki looked up to see the stubborn high-school student standing in front of his desk, an expression that was nearly a frown, but not quite, on his face.

"It's been a long time since I've seen you, that's all." Shinobu plopped himself unceremoniously onto the threadbare couch in the corner of the office, pulling what looked like a sheet of homework out of his bag.

"How do you simplify exponents in a problem with fractions?" he asked a moment later, looking over to the professor.

"How the hell would I know? I teach language, not math." Shinobu wasn't about to take 'no' for an answer, though, so he stood up and walked over to Hiroki's desk, placing the paper on his desk. "Please? I have a test next week, and I don't get it at all!" Hiroki sighed, pulling the paper towards him once he realized that the younger boy most likely wouldn't let up until he at least tried to help.

"Um..." Hiroki looked over the paper, completely clueless. "How the heck would you expect me to know this? I haven't done this stuff for years! If it was language, I could help you, but-" Shinobu, realizing he genuinely couldn't get help, sighed and sat less-than-gracefully back down on the couch.

"Well... Can you help me with this, then?" Shinobu pulled a composition notebook out of his backpack, and returned to the professor's desk. He let the older man read over the assignment, only to have him look up a moment later with a death-glare on his face.

"You're having trouble with this? Really? It's so simple." Shinobu turned so that he could settle himself onto Hiroki's lap, not giving him time to respond to the action before saying,

"Nope."

"Well then what the hell are you-?" Hiroki couldn't finish asking his question, as his mouth was otherwise occupied by Shinobu's lips pressing unexpectedly against his.

"... Brat." Hiroki mumbled, pushing him away in feigned irritation. He wasn't truly upset, though, and Shinobu knew it.

He pushed Hiroki's weakly protesting hands away, leaning down to kiss him again (From where he was sitting, he was taller than Hiroki- and he was going to use this rare moment of dominance to the best of his ability)

"I have papers to grade... Knock it off, Shin-" Again, he was cut off mid sentence, and couldn't hold in a soft moan as Shinobu kissed down the side of his neck to his collarbone.

"What do you think you're doing?" Hiroki asked, a bit breathlessly.

"Mmm..." Shinobu didn't really respond, as his mouth was otherwise occupied at the moment.

Hiroki reached down to gently tilt up Shinobu's chin, meeting his lips again in a more fevered, sloppy kiss. Just as their fingers were beginning to roam over each other's bodies more intimately, the office door opened.

"Ah... Professor Miyagi." Shinobu mumbled. Even though the other professor had been the one to reject him and not the other way around, the atmosphere between them was still extremely tense.

"... Oh. I'll, uh... Come back later, then." he said, turning on his heel and walking out of the room as fast as was humanly possible.

"You know him?" Hiroki asked, the previous mood completely shattered by the unexpected interruption. It dawned on Shinobu then that he had yet to tell Hiroki that particular part of his story, and realized that he had to come up with something fast in order to avoid an even more awkward situation than the one they had just experienced.

"Ah... I asked him to tutor me before, but he said he was too busy, so that was why I ended up coming to you for that..." It wasn't technically a lie- He _had_ been rejected by Miyagi and ended up with Hiroki not soon after, although the circumstances of it technically hadn't been exactly how he had explained them.

"Oh. I didn't know that." Hiroki's eyes regained the sensual gleam that Shinobu knew all to well, before getting up to lock the door and close the curtains. From somewhere in the looming darkness that now concealed the room, Shinobu heard Hiroki say,

"So... where were we, Shinobu?"


	21. Midnight

A/N- I missed another day... *sob*

Anyway... not much to say about this one... Thank you guys for all the reviews, and I hope you enjoy~

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21. Midnight (Romantica)

Misaki's eyes snapped open, and he was aware of two things- he was cold, and he was alone in the bed. The issue of being cold was easily solved by leaning over the edge of the bed to pick up the fallen pile of blankets, but the 'alone' problem was a bit more difficult.

It took his sleep-addled mind a minute to register that if he wanted Usami's company, he could easily just go into his room to find him. With the resolution to do this set in his mind, Misaki sat up, pulling a blanket around his shoulders, and made his way out of his room and down the hall.

It wasn't really all that late, although he was unsure of the exact time- he could only hope that Usami had already gone to sleep so that he could be spared the humiliation of having to explain why he was there. Fortunately for him, when Misaki cracked open the door the light was already out and a lump under the blankets showed that the bed was occupied.

With only a moment's hesitation, Misaki pulled himself onto the bed and (although he would never have done this if he wasn't still half-asleep) cuddled up close to Usami's side. He held his breath for a moment, listening carefully to see if this movement had caused his lover to stir. Luckily for him it hadn't, and he relaxed into the comfortable warmth of being close to the sleeping man.

Misaki had nearly fallen asleep when he heard Usami's voice rumble, "Misaki...? Why're you...?" the brunette didn't say anything, as he was too close to sleep to register that he should probably reply to the man's words. Instead he snuggled closer to the man's chest, burying himself in his shirt and inhaling his scent. Usami seemed to think this was a sufficient answer, for he didn't say anything else and his breathing evened out.

It took only a few minutes after that for Misaki to doze off, and the last thing he heard before he did was a clock somewhere in the penthouse striking midnight.


	22. Alone

A/N- So, I actually have a reason I didn't update yesterday- I went to and Odon festival~! ^^ It was super fun, and I actually got an excuse to wear my yukata in public XD And then after that I babysat, and the parents didn't get home until 1:30 in the morning, so... yup. I didn't bring my notebook or anything to write in, so I pretty much just slept until they got back :P (I doubt anyone cares about any of this at all)

Anyway, this chapter was really fun to write, for some reason, so I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! And as always, reviews are much appreciated ^^

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22. Alone (_Romantica)_

Misaki sighed, turning off the TV and making his way into the kitchen. He wasn't really hungry, but he was bored, and knew he should probably at least try to eat something. He hadn't had much of an appetite over the last few days- it just wasn't worth making anything more complicated than instant ramen for just one person.

The brunette looked in the refrigerator, finding nothing that looked particularly appealing. Moving to the cupboards, he looked around and finally found a box of bunny-shaped cookies. Deciding they would be satisfactory, he wandered back into the living room and settled himself to work on homework.

It wasn't the quiet of the penthouse that he found unnerving- it was often near-silent, when Usami was writing and Misaki was working on homework or reading. Rather, he felt rather paranoid because he knew that he was alone here; with Usami gone on a week-long business trip, Misaki was left home alone.

He refused to admit, even to himself, that he was rather lonely there. With nobody else there, it seemed much quieter than usual. The atmosphere felt dead, in a way- Misaki hadn't noticed until he was gone, but his lover brought an aura of life into the house. Or maybe he had noticed, in some deep crevice of his mind, and just begun to take his presence for granted.

Popping one of the cookies from the box into his mouth, Misaki settled down to work on an essay that was due in a few days. It was a pretty simple topic, yet he focused as hard as possible on it until he was done. He did this mostly to keep any wandering thoughts of how quiet and empty the house seemed out of his head.

Once he was satisfied with the essay, Misaki packed his things away into his bag and laid down on the couch, noting absently that the room had gotten a bit darker while he had been working. Staring up towards the ceiling, he wondered absently what Usami was doing at that moment. He was supposed to be on a book promotion tour, so he was probably at some glitzy party and hating every moment of it. Was the silver-haired man thinking about him? It seemed likely, but maybe he was too busy to have a spare moment for that sort of thing.

Misaki rolled over onto his side, looking over in the general direction of the turned-off TV. He almost wanted to turn in on, just for something to distract him from his thoughts, but didn't feel like moving to do so. There was something about being home alone that just turned him completely apathetic- he didn't want to do anything, because he felt like there was nothing _to_ do.

Misaki decided that the sooner he could get to sleep, the sooner he would be able to wake up the next day and be that much closer to Usami's return. He was in a half-asleep daze when he heard his cell phone, which was on the coffee table, signal a new text message. His previous drowsiness vanished, replaced instead with a sudden anxiousness.

There were a lot of people that might have texted him, but only one that he really wanted to hear from. He reached over to grab his phone, and a smile creeped onto his face as he saw that it was, in fact, from his lover.

_"Misaki- I love you. I can't wait to come home. I miss you."_ The message was simple, yet held more feelings than were written down. Misaki could almost imagine Usami slipping his phone out during a press conference or meeting or dinner just to send the message, and even though he would never say it out loud, he greatly appreciated it. After replying to the message with a vague, "_Yeah..."_, Misaki flopped back onto the couch, staring up at the mostly dark ceiling and feeling a deep pang of loneliness strike him through the heart.

Misaki really, really hated being so completely alone.


	23. Addiction

A/N- So, just a heads-up, I think this chapter should probably be rated 'M'- not for sex or anything, but... well, you'll see, I guess. I feel like I really could have made this better, but I've been working on it for 2 days already so I figured I should just post it already.

And it seems, at least to me, like this could be developed into a multi-chapter story- so if anyone's interested either in writing that or in me possibly writing it, let me know~!

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23. Addiction (_Takano x Ritsu)_

Ritsu wasn't quite sure when or how it began, really- but no matter why it had started, the fact remained- his superior had been slowly throwing entire his life and future down the drain, and knew full well that he was doing it.

He had suspected that there was something wrong for a while, a week or two maybe, when his suspicions were finally voiced by someone else.

"Takano-san? Is there something wrong with you? You look kind of... dead." Kisa commented, and Ritsu's ears perked up at hearing this. He had noticed that there had been something awry for quite a while, but been hesitant to comment on it.

However, now that Kisa had called the boss out on it, the changes were unmistakable. Onodera looked up discreetly, and noticed that the man's appearance seemed even more bedraggled than it had before, his under-eye bags now looking like black eyes- and surely, his sleek noir hair had never looked so greasy and unkempt as it did then.

"I'm fine, just stress from the deadline coming up..." the black-haired man's voice sounded rougher than usual, as though he had a cold.

"But, the deadline's not for two more weeks... " Ritsu mumbled, a dead giveaway that he had been eavesdropping on the conversation.

Takano cast something that looked almost like a glare in Onodera's direction, which was something that the brunette was not used to seeing. The occasional frown wasn't unusual, but the death stare was a startling and unwelcome change.

"I don't see how it concerns any of you." he said stiffly, turning back to his work with an air of finality that discouraged any further initiation of conversation. Ritsu figured that the man must have just been having a rough day, and didn't think any further about it until later that night.

"_Come over_." The text was simple, and normally Ritsu would have just disregarded it entirely. But there was something about the utter simplicity of it, combined with the man's elusive behavior earlier that day, that made Ritsu feel compelled to obey his wishes- just this once, of course.

"_Fine. Be there in a minute._" he typed, sending the message before slipping into his shoes and walking next door.

He knocked on the door, but didn't receive an answer. Thinking that it was kind of rude to invite him to come over and then not open the door when he did, Ritsu tried opening the door and to his surprise found it unlocked.

"Takano-san?" he asked from the genkan, removing his shoes before stepping inside. He knew his way around well, both from previous trips there and the fact that it was an exact mirror of his own apartment next door.

Slightly unnerved by the fact that he didn't get any kind of answer, Ritsu poked his head into the bedroom. It was empty and the light was off, but he recognized the clothes that his boss had worn to work were strewn across the floor. Feeling more than a little paranoid now, Ritsu pulled out his phone to call the man and ask where he was when he heard what sounded like a choked sob from the bathroom.

"Takano-san...?" he pushed open the unlocked door, and it took him a few long seconds for his mind to comprehend the horrifying sight before him.

Masamune sat in a half-curled up position on the floor, his face damp with sweat and a few streaks of tears. Ritsu's eyes travelled lower, and his eyes widened in absolute terror. There was a strip of rubber tied around his upper arm, and a bead of blood gathered at a pinhole-sized point on the inside of his elbow. A used needle that lay discarded on the floor only served to confirm his most terrible suspicions- the man was doing drugs.

But what hurt Ritsu even more than this sickening realization was the expression on Takano's face. His face echoed horror, self-disgust, and... Was it _regret?_

Another shuddering sigh from the man on the floor jerked Onodera back to his senses, and his knees gave out, leaving him in a kneeling position in the doorway. His black-haired boss didn't say anything, just looked up at him with a terrifying expression which was completely unreadable.

"T-Takano-san..." Ritsu felt like he would burst into tears any second, but was still shocked beyond being able to actually do so. There was something about seeing the man who was always so confident and headstrong lying broken on the floor that made him feel weak and useless.

"I... I'm sorry." despite the definite slur to his words, the black haired man seemed more-or-less coherent. "I should never have... done any of... this." Ritsu took a deep breath, trying to relax the thousand-and-one thoughts chasing each other around in his mind. _Why would he do this? What would he gain? How __did this start?_

With trembling fingers, Ritsu reached over to untie the rubber strip that was limiting circulation to the other's lower arm. Then he reached for toilet paper, ripping off a few squares and pressing them to the point where the needle had entered, wiping away the half-congealed blood that was crusted there from at least two other injections.

He tried to keep himself focused, working on one small task at a time so that he could keep his mind clear. As long as he didn't have to look at the frustrated, horrified expression across his ex-lover's face, he could work with a surprising level of efficiency.

Once he had wrapped a light bandage around his boss's arm, he finally allowed himself to look up and meet the dark, dull-looking eyes. The expression he found there still hurt to see, but now that he had gathered his wits about him, he was much more prepared to face it.

"Are you okay?" he asked. He knew it was the last thing he should say in this kind of situation, yet felt somehow compelled to ask it anyway. Ritsu felt completely useless; he has no idea what to do, and even though it wasn't truly a life-or-death situation as the man didn't seem to be in any danger of overdose, it was still extremely stressful.

"No..." Takano mumbled, curling up his knees to bury his face in them. Ritsu's vision began to blur with held-back tears, but he managed to keep at least enough presence of mind to pull himself to his feet, before reaching out a hand to the black-haired man. He stood shakily, and leaned heavily on Ritsu. Despite being only a few years apart in age, Takano was much larger and it took a great deal of effort to not send them both crashing back to the ground.

Ritsu guided his charge into the bedroom, and half-lifted him onto the bed. "Do you... Want anything? Water, or...?"

"How... How can you do this?" the man didn't answer his question, instead asking one of his own. "After e-everything I've done to you, now a-and back then...?" Ritsu sighed- he wasn't really even sure himself- but he knew that his obligation to help the situation had gone beyond simply being a good samaritan.

"I..." Onodera took a seat on the edge of the bed, "I know I don't really say it all that much, but I do care about you. I mean... Of course I do, idiot. And this- seeing you like that, it... it hurts me. Not as much as it hurts you, I'm sure, but... It does." It appeared that while Takano hadn't injected enough of whatever drug he had been taking to give himself a true high, he was still more loose-lipped than normal- Or maybe he had just finally found the confidence to say what was on his mind.

"It's my fault. All of it... If I had just been able to deal with shit like the man I'm supposed to be... None of this would have happened. I'm sorry, Onodera..." these words were so completely unexpected that it took a moment for them to soak in. Ritsu opened his mouth, then closed it again, before finally opening it to say,

"It's... probably my fault too. Right?" Even to him it sounded selfish- surely there were problems in the other's life that didn't involve him, right? But if his boss was feeling even half of the stress that Ritsu was over their might-be-relationship, it was no wonder he had resorted to such drastic measures to clear his head.

Masamune didn't say anything else, just pulled back the blankets and gestured for Ritsu to join him. For the first time in ten years, he did so without putting up the slightest bit of a fight. He had to admit to himself that despite how bizarre and terrible the entire situation was, he had truly missed the strong arms wrapped around him.

Not that he would ever bring himself to say it out loud, but it seemed to him that while Takano had begun taking drugs, Ritsu had unknowingly become addicted to Takano.


	24. Confessions

A/N- Sooo... This one's for Sylvia Lee~! (I hope this was what you expected... it was really hard to write OTL)

Sorry I skipped uploading for, like... 2 days? I think? (I kinda wonder if anyone actually notices when that happens...)

Anyway... Enjoy~! And remember, reviews are much appreciated! ^^

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24. Confessions (_Miyagi x Usami_)

The sound of the doorbell interrupted the relative silence of the Usami-Takahashi penthouse, and Misaki made his way to answer the door. He had offered to give his friend cooking classes that day, as he was rather irritated with how most of the food he made turned out. He couldn't remember exactly where he had first met Shinobu, but the two got along well despite their few years of age difference.

However, when he opened the door, he was surprised to see two people standing there- one of whom was his dirty-blonde friend, and the other was a tall, dark-haired stranger. (Even in this thoughts, Miyagi thought it sounded rather cliche.)

"Hey, Misaki... This is Miyagi Yoh. He's kinda babysitting me while my dad's at a work conference, and he insisted on coming, so-" Shinobu trailed off, looking to the man next to him.

"It's nice to meet you." Misaki said politely, perceiving from his tone that Shinobu would prefer that he didn't ask any further questions at the moment. "I'm not sure how long we were planning on this lasting, so feel free to make yourself comfortable." Misaki gestured to the living room, and Miyagi nodded.

"Thank you very much, Takahashi-kun. Feel free to take as long as you need." Once the two younger men had made their way into the kitchen, the professor made his way into the spacious living room. He had a large pile of papers to grade, and as he had procrastinated in the hope that his assistant professor would help him, he now had to get them all done in one night.

He had only finished going over the second assignment, however, when a man he'd never met entered the room. He had silvery hair and eyes the color of amethyst, and appeared to be even taller than Miyagi (although it was hard to tell from where he was sitting on the couch)

"Um... Pardon, but who are you and why the hell are you in my house?"

"Ah... My name's Miyagi Yoh. And as for why I'm here... That's kind of a long

story. I'm babysitting the dean's of the college i work at's brat while he's

gone, and I sort of got dragged along here while he goes to cooking lessons. I'm

sorry for intruding." The silver- haired man looked him up and down, the

doubtful look of confusion never once leaving his face.

"I see... I forgot Misaki said there was someone coming over today. I'm Usami

Akihiko, by the way." the man- Usami- sat down on the couch, pulling a pack of

cigarettes out of his pocket.

"Want one?" he asked, after lighting one up for himself. Miyagi accepted, and a

light haze of smoke filled the room a few minutes later.

"So... You're Misaki's friend, then?" the professor asked, after the conversation had

become a bit more casual between the two. "You don't look like you're related."

"Ah- well, I've always been close friends with his older brother, so I did him a

favor and let him stay with me until he gets an apartment of his own." Usami

explained, deciding that he probably shouldn't tell the almost-stranger about

his relationship with the younger man.

"Oh... I guess we're both babysitting right now then, huh?" Miyagi looked up

from the paper he was grading to give Usami a casual half-smile. "Of course,

sounds like you actually wanted to take him in. I didn't really have much choice

in the matter."

"Huh. Well, I guess so." There was something about the way the man talked that

intrigued him- the way he acted so nonchalant, yet there was a definite

dominance about him as well. Miyagi found it more than interesting, though, to

be honest- he found it downright attractive.

His own sudden realization startled him- he had never truly found another man

attractive, at least not in the same way he found this silver-haired man to be

appealing. He knew he would never be able to return the surely halfhearted

feelings Shinobu held for him, when such sudden and utter infatuation as this

was possible.

He couldn't hold himself back- without giving a single thought to the consequences his actions were inevitably going to have, Miyagi turned and grasped either side of the silver-haired man's head, crashing their lips together hungrily.

"Hmmmph!" Usami tried to pull away, most likely to ask why a complete stranger was trying to assault him, but Miyagi would have none of it. It was only when the man desperately bit down on Miyagi's intruding tongue that he finally pulled away.

"What the _hell _was that?" Usami was breathing a bit heavier than normal, and he wiped his hand across his mouth as if to rid himself of the taste of Miyagi's kiss.

"What do you think? I kissed you." Miyagi smiled cockily, curious about how the other man would respond to such a declaration. "And I wouldn't mind doing it again, either."

"Ah, well sorry to disappoint, but I think I _would_ mind." Miyagi disregarded this feeble attempt at a protest and grabbed the other man's wrists, pinning them firmly to the couch. Despite his suddenly submissive position, Usami still battled for dominance. He managed to wrench his hands out of the professor's grip and run them through the man's disheveled black hair, then slide them to the man's collar and begin to unbutton his shirt.

It was Miyagi's turn to be surprised by the other's boldness, although he definitely wasn't disappointed when he allowed Usami to take over dominance- it was clear the man was more at home being dominant than submissive.

Somehow Miyagi ended up pinned to the couch, and it was only a few moments after that when Misaki and Shinobu entered the room, only to find their respective semes already... engaged.

"USAGI- SAAAAAAN!"

"Ah... I can explain..."


	25. Defense

A/N- So, this is my 25th drabble... meaning I'm 1/4 of the way done! ^^

Also, when i was poking through my list of drabble prompts, I realized there's some that are going to be _really _hard to write. So, if you guys want, you can suggest either one-word prompts you'd like me to write, or situations/ stuff like that for me to write :) And if you suggest something, I will write it, no matter how weird it is. (Although I'd like to keep this story rated 'T'...)

So, I think that's all I have to say- and as always, Enjoy~!

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__25. Defense (_Romantica)_

_Ring... Ring..._

Usami looked away from the novel he was typing and reached for his phone, eyes widening in mild surprise when he looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Misaki calling- his younger lover was on a trip to visit his Takahiro and his family, and Usami hadn't expected to hear from him so soon.

"Hello?" he could hear only a muffled noise that it was impossible to make out on the other line. "Misaki?" after listening carefully, he could make out a few words.

_"N-no, niichan, listen- it's not..._" Misaki sounded frustrated, and maybe hurt as well. It dawned on Usami then what was going on- Misaki had butt-dialed him, and he could now listen in on whatever argument the two brothers were having without being accused of eavesdropping.

"_Misaki, I don't think you understand what-"_ Usami could tell, despite how muffled his friend's voice sounded, that he was extremely upset with whatever Misaki had done.

"_Don't say that I don't understand, because I do! A-and it's my choice, and... I don't care what you have to say about it!"_ Usami wondered vaguely if Misaki had gotten some stupid tattoo or piercing or something, but as he had just seen the brunette the day before, it didn't seen likely- and if there had been anything before then, Usami would have surely noticed.

"_This is exactly the problem- you think you're grown-up enough to make these kind of decisions, and usually I would be able to respect that, but when it's something like this-"_ Usami knew Takahiro was often overly dramatic and prone to exaggeration, but no matter what Misaki had done, it surely couldn't be _that_ bad.

"_- It's not like it's his fault. I mean... It's just that..." _A large amount of shuffling filled the speaker, and for a moment it was unclear what was going on. Then, through the noise, Usami heard Misaki mumble his name- "_... Usagi-san..."_

His curiosity was piqued, and he strained his ears even further to make out what was said.

"_- Not going to stand it. No brother of mine-"_ Usami was genuinely worried now. Misaki must have really done something serious, to warrant such a reaction from his generally easygoing (if a bit oblivious) older brother.

Unless...

Usami could think of only one thing that might cause such a reaction from Takahiro.

He had somehow found out about his and Misaki's relationship.

_Well... crap._

Although to be honest, Usami was more surprised that Misaki was actually defending their relationship than the fact that Takahiro had found out. Meanwhile, the other line had gone a bit quieter, and Usami could practically hear the glare-off that was inevitably taking place in the Takahashi household. Then-

"_Niichan, I know you don't think I really l-love him, but... I don't care! I don't care what you think about it because it doesn't concern you, s-so..."_ A resounding slap sounded, and Usami's eyes widened in horror at the thought that after all of the emotional strength it had taken for Misaki to tell him this, Takahiro had completely shot him down.

And... had Takahiro just hit Misaki? The little brother he had practically raised himself, and when he finally confessed something as petty as his sexual orientation, _this_ happened?

"Misaki..." Usami mumbled, despite knowing that the younger man wouldn't hear him from the cell phone in his pocket. The phone was filled with shuffling noises again, followed by a door's resounding slam. _So... he ran out? Where the hell does he think he's going? _

The sound of heavy footfalls and labored breathing filled the phone not soon after, and Usami realized that even _Misaki_ probably didn't know where he was going. The silver-haired author tried to think of a way to get his brunette lover's attention- he could try hanging up and calling back, but that would require Misaki to be calmed down enough to actually pick up the phone and want to talk to him.

More shuffling on the other end startled him out of his thoughts, followed by a loud thud. "_U-Usagi-san?"_ Misaki's voice came over the line, much clearer than before. "_Um..." _his voice wavered, as though he was trying to keep it steady and failing miserably.

"Misaki- you told him?" Maybe it wasn't the most subtle way of bringing up Misaki's recent fight with his brother, but it was certainly the fastest way to get and answer and figure out if his suspicions had been true.

"_Y-yes, I did. I'm sorry, I should have told you I was going to, b-but I'm so tired of keeping him in the dark even if he does hate me for it now, and-"_ Usami cut off the other's voice, as it was clear he was feeling heaps of self-doubt and worry over how Usami would react to this newest turn of events. How he did reply, however, was completely unexpected.

"You... planned to tell him? It didn't sound like-" Usami bit his tongue, realizing he had just given away how long he had been listening in on the argument. Misaki didn't seem to notice this, thankfully, and answered,

"_Yeah... That's most of why I left to come here so suddenly."_ Usami had wondered about that, why Misaki had decided to suddenly drop everything and visit his brother, but knew Misaki well enough by now to know that it was because he hd decided to tell his brother, and didn't want to wait so long that he would lose his nerve to do so.

"You defended me- _us._ I have to say, that was unexpected." Usami smiled slightly, wishing Misaki was there with him so that he could pull him into a tight embrace and a soft kiss; unfortunately he couldn't, and would have to simply settle for making his feelings known through what he said.

"_Of course I did, idiot. I mean... I do... l-love you, after all."_ Usami could hear the desperation in Misaki's words as he said this; after having been rejected and shunned by his brother due to this exact relationship, it only made sense that he would want to have his feeling confirmed.

"I love you too, Misaki." Usami leaned back in his chair and his smile widened. "Now, hurry up and come back home- I'm going through Misaki withdrawal."

"_W-what? Don't say such stupid stuff, idiot..." _Misaki mumbled, "_But... I'll try to catch the next train back."_


	26. Help

A/N- Sooo... I missed a few days. Sorry. This one's for the lovely KyoKaraMaohGirl :) As I said before, if there's any prompt you guys want to suggest for me to write, I'll do it- just leave suggestions in a review ^^

I feel like this whole one-shot doesn't make much sense, and is OOC, but... I guess you guys can be the judges of that. As aways, enjoy~

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_26. _Help (_Terrorist)_

_CRASH!_

Miyagi jolted awake, sitting bolt-upright, any remaining drowsiness now completely gone. _Had someone broken in...?_ Glancing at the clock, Miyagi saw that he hadn't been asleep for long at all, and it was only about six in the evening.

"Miyagi...?" a voice called about a minute or two later, one that the professor instantly recognized as his dirty-blonde lover's. "Ow... dammit." _What the hell did he do this time?_ Miyagi got up and made his way towards the living room, where he was fairly sure the cry had come from.

"Shinobu?" Miyagi turned the corner, and it took a moment for his eyes to register the sight before him. The largest bookshelf in his apartment had fallen over, and had miraculously leaned against a chair on the other side of the small room, just barely avoiding crushing the younger teen. Shinobu lay half- curled up in the fetal position, and Miyagi instantly feared the worst- had he been hit when it fell?

"Shu? Are you okay?" Miyagi crossed the room quickly and pulled the shelf back into an upright position. (It was much lighter now that there were no books on it, and the worry-induced adrenaline in his veins made it much easier than usual to do this.) Shinobu relaxed enough to look over at Miyagi and nod- and it was then that Miyagi noticed the thin trail of blood which flowed freely from a gash just above his eyebrow, tracing a trail to his jaw before dripping on the front of his shirt.

"Oh- Here, I'll get the first-aid kit, okay? Wait here." Miyagi hoped that he still had the first aid kit he had bought years ago, at Risako's insistence, somewhere in his apartment. He found it after a few minutes searching, though, behind some extra cleaning supplies in the bathroom.

When Miyagi returned to the living room it appeared that the blood had begun to slow, at least slightly, although the sight of the bright red liquid dripping down his lover's face was still making him feel a bit faint.

Despite Shinobu's protests, Miyagi picked him up bridal-style and carried him to the couch, settling them so that Shinobu was sitting sideways on his lap. "What were you trying to do, anyways?" Miyagi asked, trying to start a conversation with the suddenly tight-lipped boy as he rummaged through the first-aid box sitting on the couch next to him.

"There was a book I wanted on the top shelf, and I thought I'd be able to reach it, but I lost my balance ad grabbed the shelf and it fell over...I thought it was gonna crush me." Shinobu shuddered at the thought that he could have come out of this incident with much more than just a cut on his face- there were probably two hundred books on the shelf, and if the chair hadn't stopped it, he would've broken a few bones at the very least.

"Oh... Well, it could have been worse, right?" Shinobu shrugged, wincing as Miyagi dabbed disinfectant onto the gash. "Sorry." Miyagi mumbled in reply to the blonde's pained expression. He placed a bandage over the injury, smoothing it to his skin with his fingers before pressing a light kiss to it. "Better?" Shinobu nodded, crossing his arms and looking away from the black-haired man.

"Yeah, thanks..." Shinobu mumbled, glancing over to the mess of books now covering the floor. "Do you want me to pick those up? I mean, I don't know where they're supposed to go or anything, but-" Miyagi cut off his much-younger lover by pressing a firm kiss to his lips, before saying,

"It's fine, really. I'm just glad you're okay, Shu-chin." Shinobu turned and buried his face into the front of Miyagi's shirt, careful not to mess up the bandage above his brow.

"Yeah..." Shinobu inhaled a deep breath of the scent of his lover, before mumbling, "I love you, Miyagi." the black-haired man patted his head and smiled, replying,

"I love you too, Shinobu."


	27. Flower

A/N- Well, I was going to write more of this a few days ago, but then my ADD and OCD decided to make me scrub my bedroom walls so I'm finally getting this written now. Yup... That is seriously my , that and I discovered 'Welcome to Night Vale'... But whatever.

I realized after I wrote this that since Nowaki works in a flower shop, I probably should have made this Egoist and not Romantica... Whatever. Hope you guys enjoy- and as always, reviews are author food- Don't make me starve~!

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27. Flower (_Romantica)_

Misaki scrambled with his key for a moment before unlocking the door, exhausted from his classes that day and wanting nothing more than to collapse on his bed and not wake up or have to move until the middle of next week. He walked past the kitchen without a second glance, but a few steps later he realized that there had been something out of place there.

Poking his head back around the corner, Misaki saw that there was a large, colorful bouquet of flowers on the table, sitting neatly arranged in a delicate crystal vase. There were blossoms of every variety imaginable, including some that the brunette was sure he had never seen before. It was only after he had stared at the flowers in awe for a few minutes that he noticed there was a small note nestled in between a bright yellow rose and a light pink tulip.

All thoughts of going to collapse in his room temporarily forgotten, Misaki pulled the note from between the two delicate blooms. He unfolded the stiff, expensive-feeling cardboard to read, it what he knew was Usami's unmistakable handwriting, '_Misaki- I won't be home until late tonight. I love you.'_ It took Misaki a few times reading over the note to actually take in the words.

Misaki pulled a smaller flower from the middle of the display, inhaling its delicate scent before placing it on the table. Maybe it seemed a little stupid (it did to him at least), but he flipped the note from Usami over, grabbing a pen from one of the kitchen drawers and writing, '_You don't have to get flowers just because you're going to be home late, you know.'_ Then, so small it was hardly legible on the very bottom edge of the paper he wrote, '_And I love you too, stupid.'_


	28. Tears

A/N- So, I know it's been a while since I updated (Gahhhhhh...) But I've been bust and doing stuff and... y'know. Anyway, I start school tomorrow so I'm not sure how constant updates are going to be for a while while I get the new school year rolling... And also, I was wondering why you guys might think if I decided to shorten this from 100 prompts (some of which I don't really have inspiration to write) to maybe 75 or possibly 50, that I really want to write and have inspiration for? Prompt requests would still be open, of course...

Anyways, if you could be so kind as to drop me some author food (Reviews!) on your way out and let me know what you think about that, that would be awesome!

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28. Tears (Terrorist)

It seemed that there were, more often than not lately, tears clinging to Shinobu's pale eyelashes. At first Miyagi had tried to shrug it off as just normal teenage hormones, but it gradually became evident that whatever was wrong was much more than that. And it wasn't like Shinobu was a girl, so the random crying couldn't be attributed to PMS or anything like that.

_Maybe had got into a fight with a friend?_ Miyagi wondered, _but it seems like if that were the case, he would be the kind of person to rant on and on about it, not bottle it up inside himself._ It had been almost a week since this unusual moodiness had started, and Miyagi was getting a bit tired of it. Shinobu wasn't doing homework, eating well, or being open with him at all.

The dark-haired professor made his way to Shinobu's room (well, it was technically the guest room that he had unofficially moved into) and opened the door without bothering to knock. He didn't know what he had expected, exactly- Shinobu to be sleeping, or surfing the web on his phone, or maybe reading a book. But the sight that greeted him was one that was notably less calm and peaceful than any of these imagined scenarios.

Messy hair, pale skin, red-rimmed eyes- Shinobu lay curled up on the bed, clutching a pillow to his chest, staring into space. He didn't look up or even seem to notice when Miyagi entered the room. "Shinobu?" Miyagi's voice wavered, and he mentally scolded himself for it. "Are you okay?" The blonde's eyes focused on him momentarily, but he didn't say anything. There was something in his eyes that just seemed... _dead._ Not like he was on hie deathbed, but rather that the weight of life had caught up to him and he was being slowly crushed.

It was a painful expression to see etched into the features of the one he loved, and Miyagi felt compelled to do something, _anything_, to bring back the smile that used to grace the young features. "Shinobu-" Miyagi crossed the room in a few quick strides, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. "Tell me what's wrong. If you don't tell me, I can't help you." Miyagi, in an uncharacteristic show of tender affection, laced his fingers through the younger boy's tousled hair. "And that's what I'm here for, you know, to help you when you need it."

He felt a bit stupid saying something as cliche as that, but by the way Shinobu's dull grey eyes met his again, if only for a moment, he knew that it had been the right thing to say. "Shinobu, listen- I don't know what's wrong with you- you've been like this for the past week, and I don't know why. It's really... frustrating, when you won't tell me what's going on in your life." Shinobu released his death grip on the pillow and pulled himself into a sitting position, although his knees were still pulled into his chest with arms wrapped tightly around them.

"Is it something I did?" The fact that Shinobu still hadn't said anything was starting to worry him, yet he tried his best not to let it show on his face or in his voice. Shinobu shook his head slowly, once, and Miyagi let out a breath of air he hadn't known that he had been holding. "Did you get into a fight?" Again, another slow head shake, although this one seemed less certain. "Something at school?" Finally, he got a nod as an answer. Shinobu's eyes hazed over again and his eyebrows drew together, as though he were waging a mental battle, trying to make a difficult decision.

Finally, after nearly a minute of complete silence, Shinobu shifted position again- this time, he moved s that he was sitting cross-legged, and without offering any sort of explanation his hands moved to pull up the hem of his shirt. While the action at any other time would have been incredibly provocative, Miyagi knew that wasn't what Shinobu was trying to do.

It was then, a moment later, that Miyagi saw them- marks, scratches, cuts, all etched into his lover's perfect, lithe figure. It was clear by the placement that they weren't self-inflicted, so how...?

Miyagi's jaw dropped when he saw cuts, scrapes and bruises covering and criss-crossing Shinobu's pale skin. They were carefully placed so that they would be hidden by his clothes, but it was clear by their placement that they weren't self-inflicted.

"S-Shu-chin..." He mumbled, reaching out a trembling hand to stroke along the honey-blonde's jaw. Tears made Shinobu's pale grey eyes glisten, and a single salty droplet traced its way down to meet Miyagi's gentle fingers. He didn't seem to notice, though, and instead pulled Shinobu in to rest his head against the professor's broad chest. "I'm sorry this happened..." Miyagi held Shinobu in a crushing hug, arms wrapped around his bare back protectively.

Shinobu, who had been completely quiet until then, finally mumbled, "It's not y-your fault, stupid. 's mine." Miyagi knew that if that was truly Shinobu's opinion, it was a very dangerous mentality to have. Miyagi gently rubbed his fingers over Shinobu's back in what he hoped would be a soothing gesture, trying to avoid the marks and cuts that he could feel there, too.

"Was it people from school?" While Miyagi didn't want Shinobu to have to relive even a moment of the surely traumatizing experience, his protective instincts over the blonde dictated that he needed to find out exactly who had done this to _his_ Shinobu; and pound into their dimwitted skulls that if they thought they could get away with something like this, they had another think coming.

The taller man felt rather that saw the slight nod e got as an answer, and pulled Shinobu even closer still (it was amazing that was still possible at all, given how tightly pressed together they were). "Shinobu..." Miyagi mumbled into the blonde's head, "What did they say to you? You used to get roughed up all the time at school, even before your sister and I... y'know." It was still uncomfortable to bring that up, no matter how much time passed. "Anyway, it used to happen all the time, so they must have said something, right?" Miyagi was horrible at comforting people, a fact that became more and more clear with every passing second and sentence. A heavy pause hung in the air for a long moment, before Shinobu finally opened his mouth and said,

"Well... They found out about you, 'n they..." Shinobu shuddered, trailing off his sentence and shaking his head. It all clicked in Miyagi's head then- of _course_ a group of bullies would pick on the oddball queer kid with the boyfriend twice his age. And no matter how hard Shinobu tried to keep it a secret from his classmates, someone was bound to find out eventually. And even though it had been a while ago, Miyagi had been in high school once too, and he knew perfectly well just how quickly rumors spread like wildfire across campus.

"Ah..." Miyagi once again pushed the limp hair off of the blonde's pale face. "Are you okay? I mean, does anything hurt, or-?"Shinobu shrugged, still not pulling away from Miyagi's embrace.

"I'm okay." While the words should have reassured Miyagi that the blonde was not, in face, terribly traumatized by the whole thing, it sounded instead as though Shinobu were trying to convince himself of that very thing.

"Are you sure?" Miyagi asked. He tried to keep his tone as even and reassuring as possible, continuing to rub his thumb back and forth over a small patch of undamaged skin on Shinobu's shoulder.

"N-no." although this answer was the truthful one, it surprised him that Shinobu hadn't tried to mask or deny his pain any more than he had. "They... It was scary. I was terrified, the whole time they were..." Shinobu's body shook as a heaving sob wracked his small frame. He tried to choke it back and continued, "I was scared they were going to hurt me really badly, m-more than they did, I mean." Miyagi unwrapped his arms from around Shinobu's torso, although he kept one hand resting on the younger boy's shoulder.

"Listen, Shu-chin. I'll... I'll find out who it was, and make sure they're punished. I won't possibly let them get away with hurting the person I l-love-" even after as long as they had been together, Miyagi still stumbled slightly over saying it, "-alright?" Shinobu nodded, his cheeks flushed from emotion.

"I was so s-scared, I just..." Miyagi could see in his younger lover's eyes just how terrified he had truly been. The wide gray orbs, rimmed once again with almost-shed tears, looked up at Miyagi desperately. The professor, acting purely on instinct, reached to tilt Shinobu's chin up, pressing their lips together. Although it started out as what was supposed to be a gentle, reassuring kiss, it escalated to Shinobu reciprocating hungrily, searching through the contact for the assurance that Miyagi would be there for him at the times when he truly needed it most.

"Better?" Miyagi asked when they finally pulled apart. A single, final tear dripped down Shinobu's cheek, before he nodded, a weak smile gracing his features before he reached forward to wrap his arms around Miyagi yet again.


	29. Loss

_A/N-_ Sorry it's been so long! School started, I've been insanely busy, and... stuff, y'know? I've been in a rather depressed mood lately, so I guess that sort of explains this drabble.

Umm... Trigger warning for major character death, I guess?

Remember to review and let me know what you thought, m'kay?

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29. Loss (Egoist)

_No._ This wasn't happening. It _couldn't_ be. Nowaki left the house just earlier that morning- there was no way he'd never come back again. There was no way it had really happened- someone was lying, someone was playing a sick joke, someone was fucking with his mind- but he couldn't be _gone._

_Dead_. There was no way- Nowaki was so happy and so cheerful and so goddamn full of life. That couldn't just _vanish._ There was no way it was real. It couldn't be. _He's alive, he must be, he has to be, he can't be gone._

_Nowaki..._ It wasn't possible. It was a joke or a prank or he was hallucinating, but it was _not_ real. Nothing about this could be real. Not Nowaki being _gone, _not the official-looking men in uniform knocking on the door, telling him that they were there because the address was listed as a residence, telling him that they needed to speak to him, telling him that-

"We're truly sorry for your loss." or "We give our condolences." or "Is there any family you can call?" or "Here's a number for a therapy hotline." or "There was no way he could have seen the truck coming, really."

They were so detached, so businesslike, so _damn emotionless_ that Hiroki wanted to slap them both, wanted to scream in their faces and yell at them for not feeling as utterly _destroyed_ as he did.

But he didn't do it. Instead, he gave them dull one-word answers and nodded in response to their words, hiding how shattered he felt behind a mask of emotionlessness. He waited until the door was closed behind them- closed nicely, not slammed in their faces as he wanted to- before the full impact of their words hit him.

He couldn't even cry at first- the shock had been so great that all he could do was stare into space and think, over and over, _It's a lie... It's a joke... It has to be..._ But tears had come, and when they did, he had broken down so completely that he hadn't even been able to stand. He just sat there, curled up in a ball on the floor, and _bawled._

He didn't care who heard, or what they thought of the grown man sobbing pitifully. He couldn't have stopped himself even if he had wanted to, anyhow.

Hiroki didn't even notice the blood dripping down his arms from where his fingernails had dug into them until there were rivets of blood streaming down to the carpet, and only then was he jerked violently back into reality. He stumbled to his feet and half-ran towards the bathroom, sinking to his knees in front of the toilet just as his stomach emptied itself.

Once he was done retching, he sank back onto the cool tile of the bathtub, inhaling and exhaling slowly. "H-how? Why? Why, Nowaki? Why did you have to go and _die_, goddamnit!?" Hiroki screamed at the top of his lungs into the silence, wishing desperately for something, anything, to answer him because _why was it so quiet? Where was Nowaki, chattering on about his day or the weather or anything? Where was he when Hiroki felt like he was being slowly torn apart, muscle and skin and bone slowly cracking and shattering?_

Tears streamed down his face with renewed vigor, salty liquid mixing with mucus and saliva in the mess covering his face. A quick glance in the mirror showed bloodshot eyes and broken veins speckling his cheeks and eyelids from vomiting.

"Why_? Why_... why, why, why? W-why did this have to happen? _WHY?"_ Hiroki could feel the strain on his vocal cords as he screamed, his voice cracking in a way it hadn't for many years.

Eventually, after nearly an hour of sitting on the unforgiving tile and alternating between screaming, sobbing, and wondering why it hadn't been him, he pulled himself shakily to his feet. He didn't want to- he could have sat there and never moved again- but the very small part of his mind that was being logical said to get up, and at the very least wash the half-dried residue from his face.

Once he had done this, he wandered detachedly towards the kitchen. He picked up his phone with quivering fingers, his eyes already threatening to brim over with tears again. There was a small 'one new message' at the top of the screen, and Hiroki hoped wildly that it would be Nowaki saying something like, "_It was all a joke, I'll be home before dinner~!" _

Unfortunately, it wasn't. Four words stared back at him from the screen, four little words that sent him completely over the edge into tears again:

_"I love you, Hiro-san 3"_


	30. Glitter

A/N- I got hit by a car today. No joke. That was the single scariest thingthat has ever happened to me... I'm fine, just a little bruised and scared. But seriously. NOT FUN.

Anyway... It's been forever since I've written any of the Sekaiichi characters, so I feel like they're really OOC and weird D: But I figured if you guys survived the last chapter, you deserve some nice Yukina x Kisa fluff, right?(Eheh... about last chapter... I really hope nobody hates me too much now.)

Anyway, as always, remember to leave a review on your way out and tell me what you thought~!

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30. Glitter (Yukina x Kisa)

"Yukina... Would you care to explain why there's glitter everywhere?" Kisa crossed his arms, only able to look down on the taller man due to the fact that Yukina was sitting cross-legged on the floor.

"Well you see, Kisa-san, our store's promoting a new book soon- and I heard it was one of the ones you worked on, so I figured I'd make an extra-special display for it." Upon further investigation, the familiar title of Kisa's most recent project was indeed at the center of the glittery death-trap, artfully spelled out in bright green glitter.

"Oh..." Kisa settled himself on the couch, which was one of the few places in the room not dusted with the sparkles. "Well, why is it _everywhere_?" he asked, one eyebrow cocked accusingly.

"It sort of... spilled. On everything. Sorry 'bout that." Yukina said, not seeming particularly sorry at all judging by the rather sparkly aura seeming to surround him. "How was work? I didn't think you'd be home for another two hours, at least." Kisa pulled his knees in to his chest, sighing with a long exhale before saying,

"The usual. Exhausting. Stressful. Frantically working to get everything done... But we _did_ get it done, so I guess that's a sign that Takano-san knows what he's doing." Kisa's eyes roamed over the room, trying to ignore the glitter ground into the carpet and covering the coffee table and even the few specks of it that were stuck to Yukina's cheeks or in his hair, making him appear more frustratingly shiny and sparky than usual.

"Ah, well that's nice..." Yukina frowned slightly at the extravagant manga display, tilting his head a bit to one side. "Does this look okay to you?" He asked, turning the display around so Kisa could see it better.

"Of course! I mean... Its too damn glittery for its own good, but it's kinda... you-ish, y'know?" Yukina smiled, reaching forward to ruffle Kisa's already- disheveled hair. When he reached up to smooth it out, he found that there was a fine dusting of glitter on his fingertips. Without saying a word, he dragged his fingers across the coffee table to cover them in the stuff, before reaching out to leave a streak of sparkle from the bridge to the tip of Yukina's nose.

The smug smile on the manga editor's face was priceless- well, until his boyfriend dumped a handful of glitter over Kisa's head, showering him so completely in sparkles that he could only sit there in shock for a moment.

He was startled back into reality soon enough, however, and reached over the coffee table to wipe his glitter-covered hands through Yukina's thick hair, a half-smile on his face. It wasn't as though the addition of sparkles changed his appearance all that much, but the idea of revenge was incredibly sweet.

A full-on glitter war ensued after that, without the slightest care given to the fact that it would all have to be cleaned up later. Somewhere along the way the sparkles had become far less interesting than each other, and what began as an innocent glitter war turned into something decidedly less chaste and carefree.

Needless to say, Yukina's display didn't get finished that night.


	31. Snow

A/N- I'm quite hot at the moment, actually. Not sure why I'm writing about snow. :P

Oh! And I can't remember if I've mentioned it before, but you guys can follow me on tumblr! Y'know... If you want to... It's www. rizhae. tumblr. com ^^ (Just take out the spaces :3)

Enough of my shameless self-advertising, enjoy the chapter~!

31. Snow (Terrorist)

The cold bit at Shinobu's nose and the tips of his ears, and he shivered as the wind went straight through the thin coat he was wearing. He'd stayed after at school to retake a quiz, and been stuck walking home much later than planned. If he had known that it had started _snowing_, he probably would have called Miyagi to ask for a ride- but really, by the time that occurred to him, he was almost back to their temporarily-shared apartment, so there was no reason to bug him about it now.

Shinobu shivered again, sniffling. His nose was running from the cold, his shoes were soaked, and he could hardly feel his fingers or toes. Burrowing his hands deeper into his pockets, he picked up his pace and continued resolutely towards his destination.

It had been nearly another twenty minutes of trudging through the thickening snow, when Shinobu was ready to admit defeat. He had taken a wrong turn somewhere- the buildings all looked alike when dusted in a layer of white- and the only thing he was sure about was that he had absolutely no idea where he was. The sun had gone down a while ago, making the cold that had previously been just annoying become a much more pressing problem.

With trembling fingers that had gradually turned a startling shade of bluish-purple, the blonde flipped open his phone and tried to dial Miyagi's number. It was hard to press the buttons due to how badly he was shivering, and it took him three tries to dial it correctly. The phone rang a few times, before-

"Hello?"

"M-Miyagi?" his teeth were chattering pathetically, making the single word come out clipped and miserable-sounding. "Umm..."

"Shinobu? _Where are you_? You said you were going to be back by five, and it's-" the other man paused for a moment, "_eight-thirty." _Shinobu sighed, the air forming a little puff as he exhaled.

"W-well, I had to s-stay after school to retake a quiz, t-then I kind of got lost, and..." Shinobu sneezed, nearly dropping his phone. "I'm... um..." he looked to the nearest street signs, reading off the unfamiliar name.

"How the hell did you get _there_?" Miyagi asked, sounding more relieved that Shinobu was alright than angry that he had been gone for so long.

"I dunno... I just kinda ended up here... B-but, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, c-could you come get me, maybe? It's starting to snow again, and..." Shinobu wasn't usually hesitant to ask for what he wanted, but it felt a bit awkward to ask for a ride when the only reason he needed one was his own stupidity.

"Of course, idiot..." Miyagi's tone sounded a bit irritated, but in a jokingly light way. "I'll be there in a few minutes. Just stay where you are, okay?" Shinobu promised he would and hung up the phone, taking a seat on a nearby bus stop bench and hugging himself with his arms to preserve whatever heat he could.

A few minutes later, Miyagi's car pulled up. When Shinobu stood up, a small pile of settled snow fell off his head and to the ground; he hadn't even noticed its presence, as he was so cold that it didn't make any difference.

"You getting in, brat?" The sound of Miyagi's voice through the open car window startled Shinobu back to reality, and he nodded awkwardly before opening the door and settling himself into the passenger seat.

"Thanks... for coming to get me, I mean." The blonde looked out the window, the warm air from the car heater feeling like heaven against his frozen skin.

"Shinobu-" Miyagi started, but didn't say anything else. Looking up curiously, Shinobu found that Miyagi had leaned over and was much closer than expected. Shinobu didn't have time to ask what he was doing, before Miyagi's lips descended on his own. The kiss was gentle and reassuring, and Miyagi's warmer lips against his own cool ones felt wonderful.

Shinobu figured that if this was the kind of reward he got for wandering in the snow for a few hours, he really wouldn't mind all that much if it happened again.


	32. Hurt

A/N- Sorry I haven't been updating often (Stupid school getting in the way of things ;-;)

So... I'm really hoping people can appreciate this chapter. I mean, I've been dealing with some self-harm stuff myself, and I finally put that into writing, so I hope I did the topic justice...

Enjoy~

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32. Hurt (Takano x Ritsu)

The pale scars laced over Ritsu's skin- some pale and almost gone, but many still prominent and scabbed over. It made a sick kind of sense, when Takano thought about it- He knew Ritsu had a habit of doing this... _before_, but had assumed- hoped, even- that it had been another thing that had changed about the other man during the decade they hadn't seen each other.

The brunette pulled away his arm harshly, pushing the sleeve back down over it and crossing one slender arm over the other. He turned towards the door, trying to leave Takano's apartment and return to his own, but the man's next words made him freeze.

"You're-" Takano searched frantically to find the right words. He knew he had to say _something_, but was coming up blank and stumbling, "- you're doing that again?" Ritsu avoided eye contact, as though pretending the issue wasn't there would make it go away.

"I'm fine..." the younger of the two said, although whether it was in response to Takano's words or an attempt to reassure himself, it was impossible to tell. Ritsu wasn't blushing, as he always seemed to when they were in close proximity to each other- rather, his face had gone incredibly pale, as though he were in shock.

"You're not." It was a statement of fact, not a question. "Not if you're doing that." Takano was careful not to use any words that might seem as though he wasn't taking the situation seriously- one of his mistakes from high school had been using words like 'cutting' or 'self-harm' too lightly, which would (he understood now) be extremely triggering and upsetting. He wanted to slap himself a thousand times over for what he had done back then, especially seeing that the issue was still continuing now.

"Does it... have anything to do with me?" It may have seemed an egotistical thing to say, but Takano had to know- he had been the cause back then, or at least most of it, and if it was somehow his fault again, now- well, he had to do something to fix it.

"I... No, it's nothing, it's just... stress from work, and other stuff, a-and-" It was clear that Takano had hit the nil on the head with his guess, and Ritsu was only trying to come up with excuses. "I'm fine... Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to go. I've got... stuff to do."

"Don't." Takano said, although he didn't reach out to physically stop him this time. It was purely Ritsu's choice- whether he would choose to leave, return to his own apartment and drown his sorrows under a blade, or stay, and talk things out with the one person he could trust with this. Even if he constantly denied all feelings towards the other man, something about his current dire situation tempted him to stay.

"Fine." he mumbled, "I'll stay. For a while." Takano seemed happy about this, although he didn't say anything. He simply sunk onto the couch and patted the space next to him. Ritsu, feeling rather self-conscious, took a seat next to him.

"It's my fault." It wasn't a question, but rather, a statement of fact. A quick sideways glance showed that the dark circles under his boss's eyes were even more defined than usual, "You can't deny it. I can tell you're lying." Ritsu shifted away, widening the gap between them.

"It's... my fault. Not anyone else's. I'm an idiot and I'm weak and hopeless, but none of that's anyone's fault but mine." Ritsu paused, before continuing, "It's not your fault. I swear." Takano reached over to place a hand on Ritsu's shoulder, gently forcing him to turn and make eye contact.

"You're _not_." he said with a startling amount of ferocity, "You're _not_ and idiot, you're_ not_ weak, and you sure as _hell_ aren't hopeless. This hurts me, okay? I know you can't tell why, but seeing you hurt like this, seeing you hurt _yourself_ like this- it fucking hurts, Onodera." Takano didn't even try to keep himself calm and rational. "Did you know that? It hurts me to see you like this, because... because I love you, dammit, I've told you a thousand times and I guess it still doesn't sink in. I _love_ you, but all you can do is make yourself hurt."

Ritsu sat in stunned silence, eyes wide and tears threatening to brim over down his cheeks. "I- I'm sorry..." It was evident that he had finally realized just how deeply his actions wounded the other man- while all of Ritsu's scars were on the surface and easy to see, Takano's were buried deep, a slow-smoldering pain that had lain dormant for a decade, only to flare up again with a vengeance. "I'm sorry, Takano-san..."

"It's... It's alright." Somehow, Ritsu's head had become buried in the crook of Takano's neck, and the tears streaming from his eyes were felt rather than seen as he shivered from the force of his sobs. "You'll be okay... I promise."


End file.
